Gin Weasley, 5 years old
by xxxfire-feariexxx
Summary: Gin and Draco were friends as children, but as they became older they quickly forgot. Now they are our typical enemies, until a childhood gift works its magic, and Draco suddenly finds himself the caretaker of a Ginny who thinks she is five years old.
1. Ginny Weasley's Keeper

A/N: I'm back! I know it's been a few months since Victimized ended, and I know I said I'd start working on this story again ASAP, but I've been very busy what with graduating from high school and working on three separate novels. But I had a dream last night about Ginny and Draco and I woke up this morning and decided I wanted to start working on this fic again. I'll be fixing the first five chapters to suit my new plot, which is slightly altered, and then I'll finish up.

Gin Weasley won't be nearly as long as Silent Secrets or Victimized, nor as dramatic and gory. It's going to be more a light, humorous story based off of an anime entitled Nanaka 6/17, in which a girl named Nanaka hits her head and suddenly thinks she is 6 years old again. However, if you've seen the anime, don't expect it to be exactly the same, as I'm mostly just taking the basic idea and running with it.

This will probably be the last fanfic that I write, at least for a very long time, as I'm hoping to have a few novels done sometime in the next year and start looking for a publicist. Now, on to the story!

x x x x x x x x x x x x x x

The blonde boy snuck into the garden quietly. A small, red haired girl sat there, surrounded by the mistress's house kittens and caged doves. Her curly red hair surrounded her heart shaped face and fell in soft ringlets around her shoulders. Freckles were sprinkled across her small nose. There was always an impish smirk to her pouty lips. She looked up at him with her hazelnut eyes, sparkling with mischief, and grinned. The five year old girl ran to the boy and embraced him in a tight hug.

"Draco, I'm so glad you made it out of the house safe!"

The grey eyed boy grinned at her and held out his hand. "Happy birthday! Open it. open it!"  
She tore open her present and gasped at the object inside. A crystal necklace, teardrop in shape, with translucent swirling colors inside of it. If stared at too long the colors would make one dizzy until they were put under a trance. They seemed to swirl and flow like water, magic and secrets laced within their hidden shadows.

"Draco! I couldn't receive this; it must have cost a fortune! Take it back!" She had always been stingy when it came to money. It came with being the youngest of seven siblings.

"No, I got it for you. It's a promise stone. In this stone I seal my promise that I will be your friend forever."

"A year from now?" The redhead asked skeptically.

"A year from now." He promised.

"Five years from now?" She tested.

"Five years from now." He repeated.

"Ten, eleven, twelve years from now?!" Her voice had become so hysterically loud he had to silence her to keep from waking his parents. When one was so young, twelve years seemed a lifetime away.

In a whisper, the boy swore, "I, Draco Malfoy, promise that I will be your, Ginny Weasley's, best friend twelve years from now, and forever more, or suffer the consequences of this promise necklace."

A bright light shown out of the necklace, only for the smallest fraction of a second, before it disappeared into the darkness. The girl threw her arms around the little boy and kissed him on the cheek.

"Thank you so much Draco! This is the best fifth birthday gift ever! But I have to go now! I'll see you later!"

She ran out of the courtyard and under a break in the fence, looking back only once to grin at him under the brightly shining stars.

Long after she left the boy still stood in the courtyard, looking after the little girl who lived only a mile away, her house a fifteen minute walk down a moonlight path through the woods that only the two of them knew about. He touched the spot on his cheek where she had kissed him and smiled.

"Happy birthday love." With that he walked back into Malfoy Manor.

He moved away the next day, to a bigger plot of land on the other side of London. They did not see each other again except for at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, where their house rivalry stopped them from staying friends. Eventually their friendship faded away until it was nothing but a thought on the wind. Until one fateful morning, twelve years later, on the seventeenth birthday of Ginny Weasley.

------------------------------------------------Twelve Years Later---------------------------------------------

Ginevra Weasley sighed and set down the book she was reading. _Someone_ was standing in her light. Blowing a strand of unruly, waist length red hair out of her face, she lifted her brown eyes up to the figure and glared. A tall boy stood above her, smirking that trademark Slytherin smirk. They oughta get those smirks patented. The boy glanced over his pointy nose with silver eyes full of loathing, his perfectly straight, white teeth and layered, chin length hair groomed and combed to absolute faultlessness.

"Well, well, well, if it isn't the littlest Weasellette. What are you doing out here all by yourself Weasellette, reading a book? Or were you just trying to avoid your old Slytherin buddy Zabini?"

Another boy stepped from behind the tree she was leaning against. He was a little taller than Draco Malfoy, making him a giant compared to Ginny, his dark skin and exotic voice cooed over by many girls in Ginny's year. Personally, Ginny found them both too damn annoying to possibly think of them as attractive.

She glared and closed her book, more than a thousand pages and elaborate enough to send Hermione Granger running for her money, and stood up to her full height, a pathetic one and a half meters, requiring her to crane her neck to even look up at the boys. Pathetic, but it was admittedly all she had going for her. She turned on her heel abruptly, not at the least in the mood for a confrontation, only for a hand to shoot out and hold her back.

"Come on princess, let's have a little fun. Just you and two hot Slytherin sex gods. I know a real great place we could go." Blaise Zabini whispered in her ear in a husky voice, a voice that did not at all have any affect on her, other than to make her want to retch.

"Not in your life Zabini," she said, pushing his arm away and glaring at them. "Touch me one more time and I swear you'll regret being born!"

"What are you going to do Weasellette? Hit me with a Bat Bogey hex? Or call help and have Harry Potter run out of hiding to rescue you?" The boys laughed raucously.

She hated Draco Malfoy, and that comment about Harry especially stung. Even though she no longer had a crush on him, she was still slightly bitter he broke up with her at the end of last year. She was especially bitter that he, Ron, and Hermione ran off to find Horcruxes without her, leaving her all alone to attend her sixth year at Hogwarts. It was bad enough with Dumbledore dead, but now Malfoy, of all people, had been allowed back in the school, and she had no one except Luna to keep her company of any kind. Of course, she'd grown quite fond of the loony girl, but it still stung, them leaving her behind like a fragile piece of glass.

But Malfoy! She absolutely _loathed_ that boy! He was arrogant, rude, rich, spoiled, and just plain annoying! There were all sorts of rumors as to how he was allowed back into Hogwarts, ranging from his father buying him in to him threatening Headmistress McGonnogal. She didn't put any of those underhanded rumors beyond him.

"Hey Weasellette, what book you reading?" Draco Malfoy asked, snatching her book from her arms and holding it up, reading the title out loud. "LOVE: A collection of romance stories and poems."

The boys laughed loudly, much to Ginevra's embarrassment. She could feel herself blushing a deeper shade of red with each second that passed.

"Reading romances now, Ginevra? Are you that desperate without Potter?!" The boys held each other, shaking with laughter, tears streaming down their faces.

She growled deep in her throat and snatched her book back. Or at least attempted to snatch her book back. Draco Malfoy, that insufferable, _tall_ git, held it over her head, just out of reach of her hand. She jumped and she hopped, but did not manage to get it back. "Give me my book back Malfoy!" She yelled.

She wasn't so irritated about them reading the title, really. It was the only thing she could think up on the spot to hide the true nature of the book. It was a pretty weak glamour, really, but that's what the tome, which she had bought in Knockturn Alley over the summer, was about. Ancient magic and dark mysticism. Amongst its delving into the history of magic were guidelines to wandless and wordless magic as well as performing darker hexes not taught in school. Ginny figured if she wanted to fight in the war against the Death Eaters someday, she'd better learn how to play their game. Not to mention, she was curious.

"Now what's the magic word Weasellette?" he asked, his voice sickeningly sweet and obnoxious.

"Oi love, what is this? A pretty little necklace you got here." She looked a Zabini. He was holding a crystal stone tied to a black leather strap. Her mother had sent it to her in the mail by owl post that morning, claiming she had been cleaning out the attack when she found it in Ginny's box of child things, along with some clothes and many embarrassing naked baby photos. Ginny had blushed deeply at the photos but been intrigued by the necklace. Somehow it seemed oddly familiar to her, though she couldn't quite place her finger on where she had gotten it. Either way, she had shrugged it off and figured she would look it up later in the library, her usual haunt. She had stuck it in her robes pocket and it must have fallen out with all the jumping and hopping she had done attempting to reach her book from Draco Malfoy's hand.

"Hey, let me see that. It looks oddly familiar," Malfoy said, stealing it from the Zabini boy and examining it closely. Ginny snatched her book from his arm as he studied the crystal, turning it over in his hand. "Looks expensive. Well, for a Weasley, anyway. What poor vagabond did you have to steal it from?"

Her cheeks burned red with anger and wounded pride, but she was tired of being their charade and wanted nothing more than to just leave. Still, that didn't stop her mouth from blurting the first thing that came to it. "The same one you steal your pick-up lines and insults from, Malfoy. Just give me my necklace back now." She held out a hand, palm up.

To her surprise Draco Malfoy shrugged and laid the stone in her hand.

And that was when it happened.

x x x x x x x x x x x x x x

Draco Malfoy saw the Weasellette sitting by herself under the apple tree reading yet another thick book. It had been him who had suggested that they go and bother her, having nothing else to do on a laid-back Sunday afternoon only a month into classes. Zabini agreed immediately, licking his lips and looking at the girl with a gleam in his eyes. It was no secret to Draco Malfoy how he felt about the girl. How he felt about every girl he ever met, really. He merely rolled his eyes. It wasn't that she wasn't a looker, she was by far one of the prettiest girls in school. She was also by far one of the feistiest. And one of the most wanted.

And she had no clue that a large percentage of the male population drooled over her.

Ginny Weasley, or Ginevra, as she liked to be called lately, was quite a mystery. She was a bookworm like Granger, but had the hots of some of the most beautiful Hogwarts girls. In the past she'd put out, or so many Gryffindor boys claimed, though Draco doubted how much of their boasting was true. She made good grades and didn't talk much. She hated attention. The girl had turned down two offers to be Prefect. She had also turned down every guy that had asked her out since she was dumped by Potter, no doubt still madly in love with the idiot.

She was beautiful in an exotic way. She had long, blood red, curly hair that reached to her back and light brown eyes. Her sharp features made her look like some sort of fairy or nymph. Even under the baggy clothes that she wore, a prominent figure could be seen. She tried not to attract too much attention, wearing baggy boy pants and large shirts, with faded grey cloaks that trailed after her feet and often fell over her hands. She was short and tended to blush constantly for any reason, usually unbeknownst to the blushee.

Draco Malfoy had to admit she was not sore on the eyes. But Blaise Zabini, Blaise Zabini drooled over the girl day and night. It was evident to all of the Slytherins how badly he wanted to get in the girl's pants, and how many times he had attempted. Zabini was the Slytherin Sex God. He had earned the titled by bedding almost every pretty Slytherin in school. He had snagged quite a few Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs as well, claiming they would do almost anything if you told them you loved them. He had even been known to have gotten one or two Gryffindors. But Ginny Weasley was quite obviously his main focus of attention. For now anyway. As soon as he got in her pants, he would toss her away like he did all the others. Draco only knew too well.

He couldn't exactly remember all that happened. They had argued and shared insults. He stole her book, a surprisingly heavy one (he did play Quidditch and have a very strong upper body) some romance or other and teased her to no end about it. Then Zabini had found some necklace lying on the grass, belonging to the Weasley.

Something about the necklace was oddly…intriguing. He snatched it from Blaise's hand and examined it in his hand, weighing it. It was a real crystal, that was for sure. But that was not what made it so intriguing. Inside of the stone swirled and elaborate array of colors, blurring in and out of a small heart seemingly suspended in the middle.

"Just give me my necklace back Malfoy," she had whined, holding out her hand. He figured they had tortured the poor girl enough and dropped the necklace in her open palm.

And then it happened.

A bright flash of light and color erupted between them, coming from the stone itself. He was literally hurled (quite unMalfoy-like) onto his butt. After regaining his composure he examined himself. Nails perfectly immaculate, a few grass stains on his shirt, but nothing that couldn't come out, hair still in tact…He looked up for the Weasley girl, only to see her lying on the grass, seemingly unconscious. Standing and walking over to her, he yelled out, "Hey Zabini! Come help me. I think she was knocked unconscious."  
He heard a groan and looked over his shoulder to see Zabini sitting up in the grass, clutching at his head. "What was that man? Some kind of freaky magic came from that necklace."

"Thank you for stating the obvious Zabini. Now come on. We have to get her up to the hospital wing."

Draco was never one to be nice to girls, or to anyone, for that matter. But he felt strangely guilty for what had just happened, and he didn't want to leave the poor girl laying in the grass for any random slob, or Zabini, to come by and fool around with her. They had preceded to do so, Draco carrying the girl in his arms (she was surprisingly light) and Zabini tagging along, opening the doors for him. Upon reaching the hospital wing Blaise pounded on the door yelling, "Hey, lady, open up, we've got a patient."

"What is it?" Madame Promfrey threw open the doors. She immediately began calling out orders like a drill sergeant, making Draco set the girl on the bed and sending Blaise to get the headmistress. Draco sat in a chair, commanded not to leave until he explained to the headmistress exactly what had happened with this mysterious new necklace (the school had been tightening its investigation on any odd objects or occurrences since the death of Dumbledore). Draco uneasily shifted in his chair as he waited, knowing how much McGonnogal hated him and would find any excuse to kick him out of Hogwarts. When she finally arrived, Weasley had begun to stir beside him. They all looked over at the girl curiously.

x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x

Gin opened her eyes and looked around. It was bright and there was a lot of white around her. White curtains, white bed sheet, white walls, white ceiling, and white floors. Gin hated white; it was sooooo boring, unlike purple, green, and blue, her three favorite colors. A woman, her hair pulled so tightly into a bun that it pulled on all of the skin around her face, turned to Ginny with a stern look.

"Miss Weasley, how nice of you to join us. You had quite a nasty spell there, so I hear. Supposedly a…necklace," she arched an eyebrow, "caused you to become unconscious. I highly doubt that. How about if you told me what happened and clear things up so we can…take the proper course of action." Where was she? She wasn't at home. She wasn't outside. All of this white was blinding her.

"Mr. Mafloy brought you up here. Can you tell me exactly what you remember?"

"Draco's here?!" she asked, her face lighting up. "Where is he, where is he? Where am I? Where is my mom and dad and brothers?" she had begun to tear up, she knew it. Her brothers always said not to cry, that crying was for girls, but sometimes she couldn't help it. Was she in a hospital? Has she done something wrong? Had something happened to her parents?

"Weasley, are you okay?" asked a deep male voice behind her. She turned to see…Draco?

Only he looked different. More grown up. He had stubble on his cheek and his hair was longer. And he had grown _big_! But either way, there was Draco, most certainly Draco Malfoy, in this swarm of people she did not know who were questioning her.

"Draco!" she yelled, jumping off of her hospital bed and on him. She wrapped her arms around his neck and her legs around his middle like she always did when she was happy to see him, which was every time she saw him.

"Weasly? What the hell are you doing?" asked the distraught boy. Draco Malfoy stared at the girl as she wrapped her arms and legs around him. He had to admit, it wasn't an uncomfortable position, what with her chest pressed up against him as such.

"Mr. Malfoy! Watch your language! Ms. Weasley, would you please refrain from this…this…"

"Draco, who are all of these people and why are they asking all these questions? And where are my mum and da and brothers? And where are we? And why do you look so different. You have something on your chin." The girl continued talking, her mouth moving faster than he could keep up with. He looked to Headmistress McGonnogal for help.

"Miss Weasley," the professor said, clearing her throat. Not getting her attention she did so again. "Miss Weasley!"

She looked up. "Yes sir?" Ginny began to snort, then to giggle. She thought she even heard a few chuckles from Draco.

The woman was clearly not amused. "Ms. Weasley, please refrain from behaving so inappropriately. Tell me, what do you remember?"

"I was at Draco's house cause it's my birthday and he said he had a present to give me and he gave me my necklace and then he promised that we would be friends forever, and now I'm here."

The woman stared at her in shocked surprise. "You were at Mr. Malfoy's house?" She seemed clearly confused.

"Yes. I already told you. Today is my fifth birthday!"

There was a stunned silence in the room. "Your…fifth…birthday?"

"Headmistress, I had nothing to do with this, I swear," Draco claimed, lifting both hands in the air as if to prove his innocence. "I was just talking to her and then there was this flash of light and she fell, and I dunno, maybe she hit her head or something—"

"Thank you, Mr. Malfoy, you can go now." Draco wasn't really sure how he was supposed to do with the girl still clinging to him. He gently dislodged her appendages from around his body and set her down in the bed as if she weighed no more than a rag doll. As he left the room, Draco heard the headmistress asking, "Ms. Weasley, what is your full name?"

"Ginevra Molly Weasley! But you can call me Gin, or Ginger, or Ginny, or Gin Gin, or Gin and Tonic, or Gin Bug, or-"

"Ahh, Ginny. And who are your mother and father?"

"My mom is Molly Weasley and my da is Arthur Weasley, and I have six brothers: Charlie, Percy, Bill, Fred and George, they're twins, and Ron. And Draco is my seventh brother!"

Draco froze, his shoulders hunching. He hurried to the door.

"Ah, and how old are you?"

"Five years old today!"

x x x x x x x x x x x x x x

Minerva sat at the Headmaster's desk, she still wasn't comfortable thinking of it as her own, and stared into space, trying to figure out how to solve her newest problem. It was hard enough running a school in the midst of war. Layer being a member of the Order of the Phoenix on top of that and they should call her a damn saint. But now this? The youngest Weasley girl thought she was five years old? She contemplated what to do.

Madame Promfey had done all the tests on Ginny Weasley she could think of. The magic that had been used on her was nothing they had ever seen before. It was not a spell to erase her memory. In fact, there was no trace of any spell on her at all. They had examined her head the muggle way to check for what muggles called concussions, but that proved useless. She wondered if the ridiculous story the Malfoy boy had thought up was more than just a lame excuse to avoid punishment.

Everything had turned up inconclusive. She didn't know how to help the girl, and she had no evidence with which to suspend or expel the boy from Hogwarts, not for lack of trying, of course. Ever since the Ministry had become corrupted by Death Eaters, even aiding in the murder of Albus Dumbledore was not enough to get a student expelled, much less thrown in Azkaban, where he ought to be.

But she simply couldn't leave the girl in the state she was in. She was the daughter of Arthur and Molly Weasley, two of the biggest Order activists. But she didn't want to bother them with this ill news of their daughter when it may just be a passing thing. After all, they had a war to fight, and it was the best for everyone if they were not distracted.

"Oh, Albus, help me. What do I do?" Minerva buried her head in her hands.

"Well, I should think that's quite obvious." The Headmistress jumped with a yelp, spinning in her chair to stare at Dumbledore's picture behind her. Their was the usual twinkle of life in his eyes as he smiled down at McGonnogal. "I'm sorry for eavesdropping, but word travels quickly in Hogwarts, especially from portrait to portrait. I heard what happened to young Ms. Weasley."

"Yes. It's a disaster. She thinks she's five years old. I'm afraid I'll have to make her leave the school and return to her home, but…this is the safest place for the students right now, for anyone right now. I don't want to simply turn her out just because of a spell gone awry."

"Nor should you," he agreed. "It is not your choice to do so. However, there come certain dangers with a girl thinking she is the wrong age."

"You…you don't think anyone would try to take advantage of her?"

"She would perhaps be more of a danger outside of Hogwarts walls than inside, should any Death Eaters lay hands on her. And even in Hogwarts, she should be kept a careful eye on."

"But by whom? I haven't the time to spend watching over one girl! And her brother and friends are no longer here to do so. Who would possibly want to be her keeper?"

"Perhaps someone she is close to? A friend of hers?"

Minerva stared at him for a long time, trying to see through his mischievous smirk to his true intentions. Finally, she gasped in shock. "No! You couldn't mean…but he…he is a Death Eater! He tried to kill you! It's because of him that you're…you're…" It was hard to tell a portrait of a man that you were talking to face to face that he was no longer in existence.

"Dead? Yes, that's true. He did have a hand in it. But he was pressured."

"Pressured!" she scoffed, standing up and pacing the room in a rave.

"By his family, by his society, by the Dark Lord. That is a lot for a young boy to handle. He had very few options at hand, each one worse than the last."

"And now you think I should let him take care of a girl who thinks she's five years old. A girl with dire knowledge of the Order of the Phoenix. A girl you just claimed could endanger the entire Order with her knowledge now stored in a mind ill-equipped to handle torture or even the simplest of social interactions?! And you want me to lay her in the hands of a murderer?!"

The painting of Dumbledore held up a calming hand. "He is not a murderer. You are accusing him of a crime he did not commit."

"He had a hand in it!"

"He did not hold the wand that cast the spell, Minerva! And the hand that did hold it is forever forgiven in my book. But that is not what we are discussing. If you are so worried about the boy repeating last year's events, what a better way to keep him busy than by assigning him to be the caretaker of young Ginevra Weasley. And, if she can not remember anything before her fifth birthday, then she can't truly be a danger to the Order, at least not until she begins to regain her memory. Besides, she seems quite taken with him, and the best way for her to return to normal is to follow the same normal routine she has up until now."

"That routine never involved Draco Malfoy."

"No, but she seems to think he is her friend, and I'm sure if she is comfortable around him, she will begin to remember who she is. Besides, shouldn't we always learn to forgive and give others second chances?"

Minerva stared at the painting for a long time. "I don't know if I like this suggestion…I always did think you were a bit too eccentric Albus. But I respect you more than I do any other wizard in this world." She sighed in exasperation. "I suppose we will try it, for a time. If only to keep the boy out of trouble."

Dumbledore smiled. "Wonderful."

x x x x x x x x x x x x x x

Five…years…old? Ginevra Weasley thought she was five years old? The wheels in Draco's head began to spin. This was great, this was grand. Ginny Weasley thought she was a five years old! The Slytherins would be shocked when they found out! Oh, the gossip and chaos he could start with this kind of information! This was going to be so…

"And Draco Malfoy is my best friend!" The words echoed in his head over and over again, despite the fact that he'd heard them said nearly five hours ago.

Horrible.

Best friend? Best friend? Where did she get that from?! He was perfectly fine with torturing the girl with her sudden loss of memory. He was sure it wouldn't last more than a few hours, days at most, after all, and he and Zabini could use it against her forever. But now she suddenly thought he was her friend? How hard had the girl hit her head?

And now McGonnogal of all people wanted Draco to be her keeper? To tote her around to all of his classes like a little puppy dog under the façade that she was gaining a higher level of learning because she was so damn smart (which she had been, before hitting her head, anyway). The bloody woman wanted him to keep an eye on her 24/7 with the exception of at night, as he was supposed to drop her off at her house at nine o'clock sharp and pick her up before breakfast. And it wasn't like he could tell her no. The damn woman was always breathing down his neck, waiting for him to slip up so she could kick him out of Hogwarts. He wouldn't be surprised if he woke up one night to find her leaning over his bed with a dagger to thrust through his heart. His hands were tied. He was now Ginny Weasley's keeper.

Draco Malfoy's life officially sucked.


	2. Keeping Her a Secret

A/N: I know it's been a ridiculously long time since I've written anything, but I've been pretty busy with my other three novels lately. Anyways, I am rewriting and finishing this story now, so you can expect regular updates (probably every week). Thank you all for waiting so patiently for me. Enjoy!

x x x x x x x x x x x x x x

Gin followed Draco down the hallways, looking around. "So where are we going now?"

"The Great Hall. Dinner time," he said gruffly.

"Really?!" The girl squealed excitedly, and Draco had to hold his hands over his already ringing ears. He'd never realized before the power of a seventeen year old girl's vocal cords. "I've been looking forward to Hogwarts ever since (Bill/Charlie) got his letter to Hogwarts! I can't believe I'm actually here!"

Ginny stared around her with giant eyes, trying to take in everything she saw. The place was so big! Red tapestries hung from the windows which were at least four times as big as her and marble floors with veins of green, red, blue, and yellow running through them were scuffed so shinily she could see her own reflection! Paintings of old witches and wizards were everywhere, many of them friendly, waving to her as she passed. She waved back and started a conversation with a group of elderly men playing cards.

After ten minutes of seriously discussing whether pumpkin juice or chocolate milk tasted better, Draco groaned and grabbed her by the scruff of the neck, pulling her along. She looked out every window, oohing and aahing at the grounds, the lake, and the Quidditch pitch, all covered in falling leaves. She took her shoes off and slid along the clean marble, falling on her arse quite a few times, until she ended up cutting her finger and making Draco kiss it. Which he grudgingly obliged to, anything to make her stop whining. She poked her head into classrooms, picking up shiny magical objects (usually harmful and very breakable) and throwing them at Draco, telling him to "think fast" or "catch". When they (finally) reached the staircase Ginny decided it would be fun to play catch on the ever changing stairs. She ran up and down them, jumping from one to the other, and all in all making herself very lost.

It was no surprise then that by the time Draco had gotten her to the Great Hall he was quite tired and grouchy. The girl seemed to have an unlimited supply of energy. He had never liked kids, now he knew he absolutely hated them. Why the hell did that batty old McGonnogal insist Draco be her keeper?!

He hoped with all his might that the damned girl got her memory back, because if he had to put up with this for one more day, he was going to silence her permanently.

"Draco!" she screeched, and he could hear her candy bar clattering to the floor. (Maybe it was the candy that had made her so hyper?) He groaned and walked towards the sound of her voice, finding her standing shell shocked in front of a wall mirror. She was staring at herself very intently, as if confused about something.

What Gin saw in the mirror was not her own reflection, but rather that of a lovely, beautiful seventeen year old girl with long red hair and soft, prominent curves. At first Draco had been confused as to why she looked so frightened, but then he realized it almost immediately. Ginny Weasley thought she was five years old. According to what Draco had overheard McGonnogal telling her, she was a very gifted young girl who would be attending the school with Draco, the youngest child ever to go to Hogwarts. It was a pretty lame excuse, but she seemed to have bought it. But now she was staring at the reflection of her seventeen year old self, a self that was very different from what she was used to seeing.

"Draco! Draco look! What, what is happening to me Draco? I look…old."

Draco had to think fast. What could he honestly tell her? That she had suffered from a spell gone haywire and was really seventeen years old but crazy? Certainly he couldn't tell her that, she would go into shock. "It's uh…Well, you see how you and I are both older? Well, yeah, you know how McGonnogal said you are so gifted and smart? She wanted to try something new, sending you and I to a school with big kids, where we could learn just like them. So, in order to make us fit in, she made us look like adults."

"Really?" she asked, turning to him, her innocent doe eyes wide.

"Yeah, well this project is supposed to be a secret, see? That's why we have to look like big kids. Nobody is supposed to know we are just five and six. So you have to make sure you act like an adult and study really hard and don't tell anyone, _anyone_, that we don't belong here."

She nodded, her curls bouncing up and down on her head. That was the best stupid lie Draco had ever come up with! She had completely bought it, and now she wouldn't go around telling everyone that she was five years old! He might have even just saved his image (not that he had much of one left amongst the Slytherins, having failed to kill Dumbledore and all, but he still needed to incite fear into the hearts of all the other students with his badassery so at least they would leave him the hell alone, and he couldn't do that while babysitting a little girl)!

Draco stared at the girl as she gazed at herself in the mirror. She pulled a lock of curly hair straight and let it go, watching as it sprung back into place. She poked at her cheek and pinched her nose, thoroughly engrossed in her beauty. And then she did the most amusing and unexpected thing. Glancing at her chest, she poked her boob. Yes, poked it! Draco could feel himself laughing as she turned to him with a grin.

"Draco! I have boobies! Look!"

She had no bashfulness or modesty at all as she exclaimed loudly that she did indeed have boobies, just like an adult girl, and began to jump up and down, making them bounce. Draco, as much as he chided himself for it, could not help but silently admit to himself that she did have quite prominent cleavage, and indeed he had caught himself staring quite a few times without meaning too. It was such a waste that the girl wore nothing but bodiless baggy clothes. With a miniskirt and a tight shirt she would indeed have many boys looking, Draco among them.

"Well, that's what happens when you…mature," he snickered.

The girl grinned and skipped towards the Great Hall entrance. "Let's eat, I'm starving!" She patted her belly and licked her lips. Perhaps this wouldn't be so bad after all. She opened the doors to the Great Hall and gasped, stunned.

"Draco, would you look at all this food!" She grabbed his hand, dragging him towards a table. Draco flinched and pulled his hand away, shrinking against the wall. There were some hushed whispers as people began to notice that Ginny Weasley, youngest child of the Weasley family well-known for openly supporting the fight against Voldemort, had just walked in with Draco Malfoy, son of two Death Eaters, attempted murderer of Albus Dumbledore and the reason for his death, and hated by just about everyone in Hogwarts, holding his hand.

Ginny turned around when she noticed Draco was no longer beside her. "What's the matter Draco? Aren't we going to eat?"

"Maybe uh…we shouldn't sit together. Y'know, you're a Gryffindor and I'm a Slytherin, so…it would probably be best."

Draco was shocked by the girl's reaction. Her lips turned down in a frown which began to wobble, her face scrunched up, and her eyes began to tear. She was crying, _crying_! And the way she looked at him, so heartbroken and pathetic, he felt something lurch in his chest, a sudden guilt that he hadn't felt since Dumbledore's death. Draco's fists clenched as he realized, before he even uttered a single sound, what power this girl had over him, and didn't even know it! "Fine, c'mon." He grabbed the girl's hand and gave a glare that could raise the dead to anyone that looked at them. Dragging her over to the edge of his house table where he always sat with Blaise, his only friend left in Hogwarts, Draco plopped her down in his usual seat. The boy next to her gave her a nasty grin and tried to put his hand on her shoulder, but Draco snatched up the offending appendage, twisting it at an excruciating angle. "Move. Now." The kid needed no other incentive. Draco sat beside Ginny, a wall to block her from the rest of the Slytherin crowd that was now either leering or glaring at her, or both.

"Draco…what…are you alright?" Blaise stared at Ginny in shock, as if not quite sure if she was really there. "I think we need to have a talk alone."

"Not now, Blaise." Draco grabbed a plate and began to pile it up with food, suddenly wishing he had some firewhiskey as he felt stares burning holes in his back.

"But…dude…what am I supposed to think? How did you…I mean…nice catch and all but…what the hell do you think you're doing bringing her here?!" Blaise talked as if Ginny wasn't sitting right in front of him, although he did lower his voice to a whisper so no one else could hear.

"We're eating, Blaise. What does it look like?"

"Dude…are you crazy? You just brought her into the snake's pit, man. Like your reputation with the Slytherin's isn't bad enough, but—."

"Enough!" Draco slammed his fist down on the table. "I will explain everything later, without prying ears listening in, but for right now, I want to eat my dinner in peace and quiet."

Blaise looked between him and Ginny one last time before nodding his consent. They ate quietly, as Draco had requested, but he didn't miss Blaise's sidelong glances at Ginny, the way his eyes devoured her form like food, his curiosity evident in them. Draco turned away with disgust, knowing full well he'd looked at Ginny the same way just earlier that day, and went back to his dinner.

x x x x x x x x x x x x x x

He'd had every intention of telling Blaise the truth. Since they were babies the two boys had been best friends, sharing everything, never keeping a secret from the other. They had shared their admiration and respect for their fathers, their goals to grow up to be great men like them. And they'd shared that moment of horrific realization that their fathers were not great men but Death Eaters, murderers and rapists working for the Dark Lord. They'd shared that internal struggle that happens to every son who becomes disillusioned about his father, that battle between what you thought you knew and what is the truth, what you wish, and what will never be. They'd shared their realization that they did not want to be their fathers, did not want to treat women like the whores that their mothers were, did not want to follow the path that their friends so mindlessly walked. And then they'd shared that equally horrifying moment last year that no matter what they wanted, they had no choice.

Draco didn't know why he couldn't tell Blaise. But once they were alone outside, Ginny returned safely to her commons room, where no one could overhear, he found himself pausing. At first he thought he couldn't word it right, but it was simple enough to say, she'd had an accident, she had lost her memory, she thought she was five. But then he started to wonder what Blaise would hear. She thought she was five, but she still had a seventeen year old body. She had no inhibitions yet, no knowledge of love or sex or rape. She wouldn't understand if a boy was flirting with her, wouldn't understand if he was hitting on her, stalking her. She didn't know what sexual harassment was. She was naïve, and she saw only good in the world.

Why did Blaise have to say anything?! If he hadn't spoken, hadn't uttered those words, perhaps Draco could have told him. But it kept circling around and around in his head what Blaise had said at dinner, right in front of Ginny, "Nice catch." And the things Blaise had said about her before, the lewd comments, how hot she was, what a nice arse she had, how he wished he could get a pretty, sweet girl like her, and not a slut like the Slytherin girls all were. And his eyes. His eyes roaming all up and down Ginny's body, no doubt undressing her in his mind, and the more Draco thought about it, the more he felt this sensation rising in his chest. This demon of anger and jealousy suddenly reared up inside him, this strange possession over Ginny, over her secret. Only he knew, with the exception of the nurse and McGonnogal, and he wanted to keep it that way. His secret. His Ginny.

And he told his best friend the first lie to ever come between them. "I'm just tutoring her."

They'd shared everything. Except this.


	3. Shopping for Clothes

A/N: Here is the next chapter. I'm having a lot of trouble getting Ginny's 5 year old character down right. It's hard to write from her point of view because I know she can only think like a 5 year old does, and yet, at the same time, she has all of the repressed memories from the rest of her life floating somewhere in the back of her head. Plus, originally I had her be a very feminine girly character and now I'm starting to realize that even as a child she was a tomboy who wanted to be more like her brothers. Anyway, please bare with me and any horrible contradictions I may accidentally make to her character development.

x x x x x x x x x x x x x x

Gin hopped merrily down the stairs, headed to her next class, when she heard a throat clear behind her and turned, hoping to see Draco. Instead she came face to face with an unfamiliar boy. He was tall, almost as tall as Draco, and had short black hair and dark skin. His slanted eyes danced and his lips curled into a smirk.

"Well, would you look at what we have here. The littlest Weasle."

Gin frowned. She did not recognize the boy but he seemed to know her pretty well to call her Weasle without expecting to be punched in the guts. She tried to remember the boy, kept trying to place her finger on it. She knew she had seen him before, she just couldn't figure out who he was or how he knew her. He was obviously a student but she had met so many in the past few weeks she could hardly recall them all. Not to mention keep track of her classes and which to go to at what time. Draco finally had to write a list out for her with times and the professor's names and the rooms and then draw her a map too. It was all so confusing and hard to remember that sometimes she felt like breaking down crying but Draco told her to be a big girl and she wanted to make him proud.

"What are you doing out all by yourself Weasley?"

"I'm going to the Great Hall for breakfast," she stated simply. "I'm Gin by the way, but you already seem to know that. What is your name again?"

The boy looked slightly startled, and then sneered. "Trying to act like you don't know me Weaselette? Now that's not very nice. I thought we were friends?" He placed his arm around her, his hand on her waist, and looked down at her. The boy lifted and eyebrow and smiled at her. "Well, doesn't somebody look rather different today? Why the sudden change of heart?" He pulled at her curly ponytails playfully. She was still wearing the boring clothes that must have been given to both her and Draco now that they were bigger, but at least she had found some hair ties. Gin was confused at the way he talked like he knew her, but continued to walk. He was acting rather oddly, but at least he was being nice. Maybe this was his idea of a hug?

"Ummm, thank you, I guess. But you never did tell me your-"

"Zabini!" a voice yelled out, one Gin recognized. She turned and smiled, waving Draco over. He was running and appeared to be panting.

"Ginny? What are you doing here? With him?" he asked, out of breath.

"I don't know," she shrugged. "He just came up and started talking to me. I think he likes my hair. Do you like my hair Draco? See, I put it in ponytails. They're not as good as when my mom does them though. I never did get your na-"

A hand clamped on Gin's shoulder, and Draco wheeled her away from the boy. What had he called him? Zabini?

"Hey, what's going on?" the boy asked, confused.

"Ginny, why don't you run to the Great Hall, I'll be there in a minute. I'll give you candy if you can make it in less than five minutes."

Ginny jumped happily, forgetting all about the strange boy, and ran off in the direction of the Great Hall.

x x x x x x x x x x x x x x

Draco watched her go and rubbed the bridge of his nose in exasperation. He could feel Blaise staring at him in shock, and wondered what he would say to his friend.

"Hey, what's going on?" Blaise asked him, evidently bewildered. He could see why the boy would be confused. He had put his arm around Ginny Weasley, _Ginny Weasley_, and still managed to not be killed by one of her nasty bat bogey hexes, and yet Draco had pulled her away from him. Draco opened his mouth, ready to tell the boy everything, when he spotted the look in his eyes.

The boy's eyes were shining as he stared at the corner that Ginevra had just turned. Draco could recognize the look he was giving her. Lust. Passion. Greed. Curiosity. And suddenly, Draco snapped his mouth shut. He couldn't tell Blaise. For the life of him he couldn't tell his friend anything about her.

Her smile. Her innocent eyes and lovely smile. He hadn't seen such a lovely smile since…since ever. And he had never realized until now just how much he needed that innocent smile and those trusting eyes. She could never, would never, understand lust. And if he were to tell Blaise Zabini about her sudden change…The boy would chase her down like a wolf after its prey. Draco had never cared about her, but suddenly he couldn't let Blaise do that to such an innocent pretty trusting girl. He just…couldn't.

"Well? What was that? She was acting so differently. And she pretended she didn't know me. I think she's trying to tease me…"

"Pepper up potion," Draco quickly lied. "Some rumor is spreading around that she likes a boy at school. She suddenly started acting weird a few weeks ago, dressing up more and smiling at everyone. Maybe she likes you…" Draco spoke quickly, the words, the lies, spilling out so easily. He found that lying once to his friend had made every lie after that one easier.

"Ya think?" the boy lifted and eyebrow. "Why in the world would she want me now? She hates my guts. Maybe someone put her under a love spell or imperious. Either way, it looks like I'm going to have competition with this new boy, whoever he is." Zabini smirked. "It shouldn't be too hard. Nobody can resist my charm for that long. She is bound to snap eventually. And when she does…"  
Draco's heart sped up, much to his surprise, and his mouth went dry. "And when she does…?" he asked.

"Well, y'know." The boy grinned nonchalantly, letting his vague words linger. Draco clenched his fists and looked away, more to prevent him from hitting his friend than for any other reason. He had to remember that Zabini didn't know the truth, didn't know just how disgusting those words sounded to him.

"I'm going to the Great Hall, see ya around Zabini." Draco walked off, sighing to himself. Arriving at the Great Hall he found Ginny sitting at her house table and saving a spot for him. She waved him over with a happy grin, and Draco felt his stomach clench at her innocent smile. He sat next to her, smiling weakly in return, and took a deep breath.

"Be careful around that boy, Blaise Zabini, okay?"

"Why?" she asked innocently. "He seemed really nice."

"Well…well he's not, alright? He's really really mean. And you should avoid him."

She tilted her head to the side in confusion. "But shouldn't we be nice to people who are mean to us? Maybe he just wants a friend."

Damnit! Draco wanted to slam his fist on the table and yell at the girl but he knew it wouldn't be right, would probably make her cry if nothing else. He breathed in slowly and deeply, glaring at the Gryffindor across from him who looked ready to flee at any moment. "Please. For me, okay?"

"Okay!" She nodded cheerfully before stuffing a pastry in her mouth. Draco had done the right thing. Yet, why did he suddenly feel so terrible?

x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x

Ginny stared at the clothes spread out around her on the floor. This just wouldn't do. All of them were baggy or uncomfortable and stiff. She was used to clothes being a bit long on her or worn because most of them were her brothers' hand-me-downs, but not this boring. At least her brothers had dragons or color on their shirts and the dresses her mom bought for her were loose and flowy and comfortable. But none of those clothes were here because she was too big for them now, and whoever picked out these clothes was just so bland.

Most of them were grey, black, or some other dark and depressing color. Where were the pinks and greens and yellows? Were you supposed to wear such boring clothes as an adult? She didn't think so. If she had to wear nothing but black every day she didn't think she wanted all that much to be an adult.

"No, no, no, no no! This just won't do!" In all of her clothes she had managed to find one pretty plaid skirt and a red sweater with a G on it that her mother had made her, but everything else was so ugly. She missed her flowy skirts and her dirty overalls and her brothers' comfy shirts. And now that she had boobs, she had to wear a bra too! It had taken her forever to figure out how to put it on and it was so uncomfortable and tight, making it hard for her to breathe. She dreaded wearing it and had even taken to avoiding it altogether, pretending that she forgot about it, and since nobody seemed to mind, she buried all of the bras at the bottom of her trunk and ignored them.

She dug again into her trunk. There were big books, too heavy for her even to try to lift, scrolls of paper, ink bottles, organized notebooks full of assignments, but nothing nice or pretty. No jewelry or make up, like she had always seen her mum putting on before a party, no pretty dresses or hats, no toy brooms or dolls or any of her brother's experiments, no colorful posters for her walls like the other girls had, there was nothing fun at all in here. She pulled out a bundle of socks and threw it to the floor.

It jingled lightly. Ginny stared at it, picking it up and unwrapping the socks. A sack of…something…fell to the floor. Pulling the drawstrings, she gasped. It was money. A large bundle of golden galleons shimmered in the sunlight.

"I guess as an adult you get a bigger allowance," she whispered, before squealing and running out of her room in search of Draco.

x x x x x x x x x x x x x x

Draco sat in the library working on an especially grueling Potion's essay assigned to him by the new professor, now that Snape had been fired. He had, thankfully, not seen the little Weaselette yet today. After following her around the castle for weeks, he was getting pretty damn tired of answering all of her questions and explaining things to her over and over again.

He heard a soft patter of feet and a voice call out in a stage whisper, "Draco? Are you in here?"

He cringed. It was _her_. Did she hear him thinking about her or something? Now what did she want? He turned and waved a hand in the air, catching her attention. Her face lit up and she dashed towards him, carrying a small, red velvet drawstring bag that jingled as she ran. "Guess what, guess what, guess what?!"

"What?" he muttered in a monotonous voice. Any hopes he had that she would perhaps, even in the slightest, somehow be her normal seventeen year old self again were long gone.

"Well…." she took a deep breath, and he already knew to shut her out, as she certainly was going to talk for a long time on a breath that deep. "I was looking for some clothes this morning in my trunk and all I could find were ugly. And then I went through my trunk again and I found this bundle of socks. Well the bundle of socks was jingling, and so I decided to look in the bundle of socks and I found this pretty bag. Well, obviously it wasn't the socks that were jingling but just the bag, and isn't it a pretty bag-"

Draco put a hand to her lips, unconsciously noting how soft they felt, before shrugging the thought off, and gritted out, "Get to the point Weasley."

"Weasley?" she looked stunned for a second before sitting down in the chair next to him. "Are you mad at me? You only _ever_ call me Weasley if you're mad at me! Oh, what did I do…I can't remember doing anything. Well, I might have flung peas at you yesterday at dinner when you weren't looking, but that's all I swear! Well I did-"

"Wea-Ginny! I am _not_ mad at you!" Didn't the girl ever shut up? "Maybe going mad. Now would you please get to the point?!"

"Well I found this big sack full of money!" she exclaimed, holding it up. Her eyes lit up as she grinned at him. "Count it for me, please?"

Draco took the bag and emptied it out on the table, counting through the coins. "Twenty galleons, fourteen nuts, and forty sickles. Congratulations, you have pocket change."

She jumped for joy, waving her hands in the air, her breasts bouncing every which way. More than one person turned to stare at them and Draco wanted to bury his head and disappear in embarrassment. What was she so excited about? That was chump change and nothing else. He had spent more money than that on quills before. "What," he gritted out, grabbing her arm and pulling her into a seat, "are you dancing around for?"

"I can go buy new clothes!" she exclaimed happily. "And you can come with me! We can go today! I heard there's a place called Hogsmeade where you can go shopping for whatever you want. Won't you take me shopping Draco, please?" She looked at him, her eyes wide and pleading and her hands folded, the perfect picture of innocence.

"No, absolutely not. I will not follow you around Hogsmeade all day looking at _dresses_." Draco hated shopping. Well, maybe for himself, that was okay, but shopping for girly dresses and shoes and…._underwear_. That was not part of the deal.

"Please please please please please please please please please?!" Draco stared into those large, begging brown eyes. She looked so distraught and wistful, and he had to admit, her clothes could be nicer. She did after all have a figure under all of those layers, it would be a sight for sore eyes to see a little of it. It wouldn't hurt, right?

Absolutely not, he would not do it. He wouldn't. He was going to tell her no, right now. He couldn't let some little kid boss him around. A very cute little kid, one that happened to be quite attractive…But no! He wouldn't. He refused.

"Well?" she asked, her lips pouting very seductively, though she probably had no idea how uncomfortable she was making him feel.

"I…Sure," he said, deflating. She jumped up and wrapped her arms around his neck, sitting in his lap in the process. He could feel his face heating up as her chest pressed against him. Resisting his male urges, he grabbed her arms and pushed her away, rather roughly, afraid if he didn't get her chest away from him sooner he might just be obliged to do something completely inappropriate.

She was only five! But she certainly didn't look just five, and he was not sure his mind could outweigh his body in that matter. Thankfully, she didn't seem to notice his internal battle, for she hopped off of his lap and grabbed her money off of the table, putting it back in her bag. She looked at him, the happy smile not leaving her face. Was she completely oblivious to his sudden dirty thoughts? He supposed so, for she seemed perfectly comfortable around him, though the feeling was far from mutual.

"Let's go!" she yelled, grabbing his hand and dragging him along, his book tucked under his arm.

x x x x x x x x x x x x x x

Hogsmeade was so beautiful! It reminded Ginny of a fairytale. All the shops looked like little gingerbread houses. She could see Hogwarts from here and it reminded her of the castles in all of the books her mother read to her. But those castles were always bright pink with lots of flowers and towers and glitter. Hogwarts looked more like the evil character's castle with its dark spires and gargoyles and stone and stained glass, and Ginny was beginning to think she liked it better than the ones in the stories.

Ginny walked around the streets, looking into shop windows, tugging Draco along after her. The place was swarming with people, some students from the school, some teachers having coffee, others people that lived around the little town, and even a few couples making googly eyes and walking hand in hand. The dark rain clouds blocking out the sunshine made it seem even more magical because all of the buildings seemed to light up even brighter. She looked into a shop full of robes, fancy party dresses, and regular clothes.

"Let's go in this store!" she exclaimed, pulling the boy in after her. Once inside a woman walked up to her, her face lighting up happily.

"Hello children! Are you looking for new clothes doll face?" she asked, grinning at Gin happily.

The girl nodded her head and looked around the large store, slightly intimidated.

"Why don't I help you?" the shopkeeper asked, introducing herself as Melanie DuBoir, though they could call her Melanie, or just Mel. "So cutie, what exactly are you looking for?"

"New clothes! I need new shirts and skirts and a new robe. I have…" Ginny looked over at Draco for help.

"Twenty galleons, fourteen nuts, and forty sickles," Draco repeated.

"That much money! And I want something new!"

"Well, then, let me take your measurements. Step right up here, sweetie." The woman proceeded to measure Ginny's height, waist, shoulders, and, making Draco blush deeply, chest. Draco walked around the store, glancing at the price tags. Five galleons here, three there. He was thankful this place wasn't too expensive; at least Ginny could buy what she wanted. He suddenly wondered why he cared. If she wanted something and couldn't afford it, it was not his problem. Draco tries to convince himself so, though he knew it would be a lost cause. He was afraid the girl was starting to grow on him.

Ginny turned out to be almost as picky a shopper as Draco. The shopkeeper kept bringing her fancy blouses and short skirts, all with lace or frills or ridiculously revealing, but Ginny turned them down, not seeming to feel comfortable with them. The woman was patient though and brought out more things. A simple brown and pink dress with a paisley design, skirts and pants that were ridiculous colors like purple or green or yellow, a bright scarf that shimmered with all different colors, three different silly hats, and lots and lots of green. Ginny seemed to love the color green, and Draco smirked to himself, thinking just how Slytherin that was of her.

Melanie DuBoir seemed to like Ginny, because she kept cooing over her, pinching her cheeks and grabbing different clothes off of racks, exclaiming that they would go well with her hair, or that her blonde friend would probably find them quite appealing. Draco became increasingly uncomfortable as the hour ticked by and Ginny showed off more clothes for him. The woman claimed Ginny would also need new bras because she couldn't go wearing sports bras around everywhere, but the girl stood up on a table and lifted her fist in the air defiantly, claiming she would never ever wear a bra again, that they were the stupidest invention ever! At least everything the woman brought out to her was fairly modest, compared to other girls her age anyway.

Gin was giving her purchases to the woman when she looked over at the dress robes. She had already spent almost all of her money, knowing she would only have enough left to buy some treats at the chocolate store she had passed earlier, but continued to stare at them. They were all so beautiful and elegant. They were made to fit a woman's curves, which she now had, she remembered with a giggle. She would never have enough money to pay for one of them but…One dress suddenly caught her attention. Grabbing it off of the shelf, she asked Miss Mel if she could try it on.

Draco groaned as Ginny picked out something else. He had thought they would finally be able to leave, but he supposed he was wrong. He sat back down in the chair he'd been occupying for the past hour and leaned his head on his hand. When Ginny came out of the dressing room he straightened up suddenly with a gasp.

It was a dress, and even a girly dress at that, with lace and all. But it was a dress that made him feel as if all of the breath had suddenly been knocked out of his lungs. It was stark white, the only other color being blue laces up the front. The top was cut straight across and only showed her cleavage if she leaned over, but it revealed just enough to tease a guy. And tease Draco it did. The skirt flowed off of her hips and to her knees, where it puffed out with a white lace petticoat underneath. She twirled in a circle and it danced around her like the petals of a flower around the stem. She looked absolutely…dazzling. It fit her so perfectly, white and innocent, yet teasing, and it made Draco's jaw drop. She looked like the innocent virginal victim about to be bitten by a vampire.

"Well…what do you think?" she asked, her large eyes wide and innocent.

"It's… it's gorgeous."

She clapped her hands and jumped up happily. Picking the price tag off of the skirt she stared at it, her face immediately turning sour and her eyes losing their glimmer. Draco could not help it, but he wanted to see that happiness in her eyes again, as just seeing it his heart had somehow beat faster and he felt content. "What is it? What is wrong?"

She glanced up, her eyes watering with tears. "It's Fifty-two galleons!" she exclaimed, and turned back to the dressing room deflated.

"I'll buy it for you." The words burst out of his mouth without thought. He wasn't really sure what made him say them, but that shine in her eyes and the happiness on her face when she heard him say she looked lovely in the dress made him want to do anything for her. He was starting to grow fond of her. There was no denying it, something about the five year old Ginny Weasley made him feel ecstatic, warm, and tingly. Perhaps it was physical attraction or something else, he wasn't sure.

As the saleswoman wrapped the dress in a fancy box, she smiled at him and winked, leaning closely to whisper in his ear. "It's pretty obvious to everyone in this room except the girl herself that you like her. Don't let a catch like that go."

Draco did not answer as he glanced at Ginny, who was preoccupied with watching the people outside running down the street as rain started to pour down. She turned to him and smiled, and Draco knew he was in trouble.

"Why don't we go get some hot chocolate?" he asked, and she grinned before running out into the streets, Draco chasing after her in case she got lost. Maybe this keeper thing wouldn't be so bad. Maybe.


	4. Letters and New Friends

A/N: Sorry it's been so long since I posted a new chapter! Almost a month now! I've been struggling with figuring out where this story is going and how to make it seem realistic in the world it's set in. I've also been swamped with homework and work study now that I'm in college and trying to write my novels as well, so this story has sort of been pushed to the side for those things. But I will keep updating, it will just take me time, so bear with me please. Hope you guys enjoy!

x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x

"Dear, we have a letter from Hogwarts," came Molly Weasley's voice from the next room.

"What does it say?" Arthur asked tiredly as he stared out the window of the Burrow. Molly opened it as she entered the room. The two adults looked tired and aged, with deep wrinkles and dark shadows under their eyes. One of their sons refused to talk to them, four of them were off fighting in the war, and the youngest had disappeared with his friends Harry and Hermione. Only their daughter was spared from their worrying minds, safe in Hogwarts where the war could not touch her, where she could finish her education and grow up in a normal environment.

"Oh my…" Molly Weasley slumped onto the arm of the chair Arthur sat in, her hand at her heart.

"What is it? What's wrong?"

"It's Ginny. Something's wrong with her."

"What? What does the letter say?" His voice was urgent. He expected the worst. His daughter was dead or missing. He would never see her again. Molly handed him the letter and he took a deep breath before reading it.

To the parents of Ginevra Molly Weasley,

I wish to inform you that your daughter has recently been in the Infirmary with a serious injury. It would appear a spell had gone wrong and she has lost any memory after her fifth birthday. I urge you not to worry, as your daughter is being kept under close scrutiny at all times and is under the supervision of one of her fellow peers. I also insist that you do not remove her from the school as it is the safest place for her right now. I did not wish to worry you, but I thought it best you knew. The nurse is working with her to restore her lost memories.

Sincerely,

Headmistress McGonagall

The two stared at the note for a long time, then breathed out deeply in relief. "Well, at least she's alright…" Molly whispered hesitantly. "She'll get her memory back, right?"

"I'm sure they will find some sort of cure for her. But Minerva's right dear, we should leave her be in the care of Hogwarts. If we remove her from it she could be in even more danger."

"Should we write her? Make sure she's alright?"

He smiled at his wife, leaning his forehead on hers. "Yes, that sounds good. We'll send her a letter at once."

x x x x x x x x x x x x x x

They were all staring and whispering, whispering and staring, and it was driving Draco insane! Why couldn't they just leave him alone?! Why did they have to keep looking at him just because he was sitting at Gryffindor table with Ginny Weasley? Every time he glanced up from his breakfast he was met with another pair of eyes. A death glare would frighten the eyes away, but there would be someone else staring at them the next time he looked up. You would think after a few weeks of sitting together they would get used to it, but no! They just kept staring!

He felt a presence in front of him and thought to himself, this was the first person to actually confront them. Draco glanced up at the girl, a Ravenclaw, and barked out, "What?!"

She turned her gaze to him, and he realized it was not he that the girl was staring at, but Ginny. The Ravenclaw lifted an eyebrow. "Testy this morning, aren't we Draco? Did we forget to drink our morning tea?" Draco, too stunned by the fact that a complete stranger had not only talked back to him but had called him by his first name, forgot to reply. The girl turned her gaze back on Ginny. "Good morning, Ginny."

The redhead looked up in surprise. "Good morning!" she said cheerfully. "How are you today?"

"I'm fine, thank you. Do you mind if I eat with you this morning?"

"Of course!"

"Ginny," Draco whispered under his breath. "Do you remember, I mean, do you know this girl?"

"No," she replied cheerfully before diving back into her French toast.

"Oh. I see. Umm…so, what's your name?" he asked as she sat in front of them. She was an odd looking girl, with long, straight blonde hair that was almost white, a shirt with the words "The Quibbler" on the front, and a flowy, brightly colored skirt on. She wore a necklace of bottlecaps and had tucked her wand behind her ear. When she sat down she did not begin to eat, but merely stared at Ginny with a blank expression on her face. "Oh, I'm sorry, what did you say?" she asked, turning her eyes to Draco.

"What's your name?" He knew he had seen her before, he could even recall making fun of her at some point, not that that was particularly rare, but he couldn't recall her name.

"Luna Lovegood." Ahh! Loony Lovegood. Now he remembered.

"That's a pretty name," Ginny blurted out. "Do you want to be my friend?"

Luna's head tilted to the side curiously. "Aren't we already friends?" she almost sounded hurt.

Ginny's head tilted in the same direction, mocking the girl's movements. "Maybe…I dunno. Draco's my friend! And…my brothers are my friends. But I've never had a girl friend before, so I don't think so. Unless you're really a boy." Draco wanted to pound his head on the table in exasperation.

Luna snorted, then began to giggle. "You're so silly, Ginny."

"Thank you!" Just as the redhead spoke those words, the owls began to fly into the room, carrying the mail for the day. Two swooped down at Ginny, one landing quite ungracefully on the table a few meters short, the other fluttering down gently in front of her. Draco reached to take the letters from them, only to have his fingers nipped at. He glared bitterly at the creatures as they allowed Ginny to remove the notes.

"Draco! I have a note from my mommy and daddy!"

"Great," he muttered, pushing his food around on his plate boredly.

"'Dear Ginny, we hope you are doing well. McGonagall informed us that you had hurt yourself. We were very worried, but she told us you are doing better now, and are being taken care of by one of your fellow students. We understand if you are struggling in classes and we want you to know that's okay. Just focus on getting better and remembering! Love, your mum and da.' Draco, what did she mean when she said remembering? Have I forgotten to do something?"

"Uhh, no. You're fine. She just wants to make sure you're remembering…to take care of yourself. Y'know, to brush your teeth twice a day and eat a healthy meal, not too much sugar! And study hard, even if things are really difficult, you know." He spoke quickly, trying to cover up her parents' blunder. Draco didn't know much about amnesia, but he was afraid if he told Ginny the truth, that she had forgotten twelve years of her life, it would only cause her to go into shock. She would likely recover much more quickly if she simply continued to live her everyday life normally, without feeling as if there were something wrong with her.

"Oh. Okay! Hey Draco, I want to write a letter back to them tonight. Will you help me?"

"Sure. Of course. But don't forget that you have to go see Madame Promfrey as well. For your check-up. Here, you have another letter. It's from McGonagall."

Ginny made a face and opened it up, reading the message out loud. "'Ms. Weasley, if you could please come to my office as soon as you are done with breakfast this morning, I would like to see how you are progressing. Professor McGonagall.'" Ginny groaned in annoyance. "Ugh, do I have to go? That woman is so stern looking." Ginny scrunched up her face for emphasis. "She looks like an angry cat that got wet." Draco burst out laughing as the image came to his mind of professor McGonagall's body with the head of a pissed off cat on top, ears flat, hissing down at them. "Will you guys come with me? Pleeeeeeeease?!" The child batted her long lashes and smiled cutely up at Draco. He lurched away from her, a cautious look on his face. He wondered if she were doing that on purpose.

"Yeah, sure. Let's go. I have class soon."

The three made their way from the cafeteria slowly. Ginny skipped along in front despite the fact that she didn't know where to go, and Draco had to continuously catch her and keep her headed in the right direction. Behind them Luna meandered slowly, gazing out the windows and stopping to chat with the portraits. By the time they reached the Headmistress's office Draco had only five minutes left to get to class.

"So…it's behind this statue here?" He nodded. "How do you get in?"

"She should have left a password on your letter. Let's see…Virtuousness. That's lame. I wonder if she or that old man Dumbledore thought that one up." As he spoke the word the statue moved out of the way, revealing a door and, behind it, a moving staircase.

"Oh no," Luna commented dreamily, "his passwords were much more interesting. Always some sort of candy. He had quite a sweet tooth, Dumbledore did."

Draco lifted an eyebrow at her. "Yeah, whatever. Look, Ginny, when you get out do you remember where to go next? What's your first class today?"

"Herbology! In Green House Number 2."

"And your second class?"

"Transfiguration…" she mumbled in annoyance. "With _McGonagall_."

"Okay. This shouldn't go into your third hour. I'll come pick you up from there and take you to lunch, okay Ginny?"

"Okay!" The girl jumped on Draco, wrapping her arms around him happily. "See you then!" She turned and dashed up the stairs, her backpack bouncing on her back. He sighed as the statue slid back into place.

Luna turned to Draco with a curious look in her eyes. "There's something different about Ginny, isn't there? I mean, besides the fact that she's suddenly best friends with you."

He sighed, shrugging past her in annoyance. He didn't have time for this. He was already late to class.

"That's alright, you don't have to tell me. I already figured it out. We've been best friends for years now. There's no way she wouldn't recognize me, and I know today she certainly didn't. She's lost her memory, hasn't she?"

He paused, staring at the ground. Maybe it would be nice to tell someone else? To shrug this burden off on them? It would make his life easier if he didn't have to keep track of Ginny all day every day. In fact, Loony Lovegood claimed they were best friends, so she wouldn't mind being Ginny's keeper would she? And yet, there was a sudden sharp feeling in his chest. A feeling of jealousy, of possession. He'd grown fond of Ginny, protective of her. In just the few weeks he'd been taking care of her, but there was something, something about her that just seemed to grow on him like a fungus. She just attached herself to him and he couldn't seem to let her go, didn't want to. As exhausting as it was keeping an eye on her constantly, he kind of liked it. His life had felt so empty and meaningless since Dumbledore's death. He'd spent the summer on the run from persecution and then managed to miraculously be let back into Hogwarts, though that was likely due to how infested the government had become by Death Eaters. But now he had no friends, any Slytherins that hadn't left to fight the war hated him, any other students had been afraid of him and now thought he was a murderer. Of course, they had no proof, Snape had cast the spell that had ended Dumbledore's life, but they all thought the same thing, all thought he was connected to it, that it was his fault. And now that Ginny had come into his life, even if her presence had caused a schism between him and his only friend, he suddenly again felt a purpose.

"Yeah…she's got amnesia," he admitted finally, when he'd returned to reality. Luna was now standing in front of him, waiting patiently for his answer. "Some spell went awry or something. She's got the mindset of a five year old."

"I see. But why has she suddenly attached to you?"

"Beats the hell out of me. I also can't understand why in the hell McGonagall would put me in charge of her."

"Yes…that is very interesting…especially considering your involvement with Dumbledore's death." He clenched his fists in irritation. "It's okay. I'm not afraid of you, nor do I hate you for it. In fact, I don't think you could have killed him anyway. I don't think you're capable of killing, Draco Malfoy. But that's besides the point. The only reason I could see her putting you in charge of Ginny is so she can gather information on you from Ginny. Ginny's probably become an unwilling spy of sorts."

His teeth grinded together as he turned to stare at the portal to McGonagall's office. Why hadn't he thought of that? "Damnit. You're probably right. Damn that old woman."

If Luna was bothered by his colorful language, she didn't show it. "Well anyway, I can see you're clearly exhausted. I'd be happy to take care of Ginny if you wish."

"I…I mean…just butt out of it, alright? I might as well take care of her if she's so attached to me, and besides, it'll make the old curmudgeon happy. Look, I gotta go to class. Bye." He hightailed it out of that stiflingly uncomfortable hallway like a bat out of hell.

"Oh my…" Luna whispered to herself after he had left. "What a tangled mess we have here, Luna."

x x x x x x x x x x x x x x

"So, how have your classes been, Miss Weasley? Are they too difficult for you? After all, you are taking a seventh year's level, despite the fact that you're only in your sixth year."

Ginny shrugged boredly, kicking her feet back and forth. "It's okay, I guess." She had learned the best way to please McGonagall and hopefully get out of there quicker was to be as vague as possible.

"And what about your health? Have you felt ill at all? Have you had any strange memories or dreams?"

"No. I feel fine."

"And your friend, Mr. Malfoy. What about him?" The woman folded her old, weathered, spotted hands and placed her chin on them. The candelight bounced off of her face, casting shadows on it, giving her a look that frightened Ginny.

"He's fine."

"That's good. What have you two done together lately?"

Ginny fiddled with her skirt nervously. "We went shopping together and he bought me a new dress. And he takes me to class everyday because I forget how to get there. And he eats with me and we study in the library after class."

"Anything else?" She leaned closer, and her thick gray hair, piled high on her head, appeared to have horns sticking out of it. Ginny gulped. When she didn't answer, McGonagall pressed, "has he been acting strangely, by any chance? Hanging around with other Slytherins? Talking about secret plans? Have you noticed any of his behavior seems odd to you?"

"He doesn't have any friends in Slytherin," she whispered. "None of them like him. They're all meanies."

The woman lifted a thin eyebrow. "Really? Not one of them is his friend?"

"Well…" she nodded, urging Ginny on. "There is this one guy that he talks to every once in awhile. But I can't remember his name. He was really nice to me though."

"Does he happen to have any tattoos, Ms. Weasley? On his wrist, for example?"

Ginny shrugged. "I don't think so. I've never seen one. Why?"

"Just wondering." The woman smiled and it pulled her face tight, giving her a demonic look. Ginny shrank away from her into the plush chair she sat in.

"Can I go now? I want to go to class."

"Just one more question, Ms. Weasley. Have you ever heard him mention Voldemort?"

Ginny gasped, bringing her hand to her mouth. "You're not supposed to say his name! It's bad luck!"

"Calm down, it's just a name—"

"No it isn't! I heard that if you say his name he comes into your dreams and kills you and you can never wake up!"

The woman seemed surprised by Ginny's panic. "That's not true at all. That's just a legend, dear."

Ginny stood from the chair, grabbing her backpack. "I don't want to be here anymore. I want to go now."

"Wait!" The woman grabbed her wrist. Her hand was cold and thin, but, despite her age, it held Ginny's wrist so tightly that it began to ache and go numb. Ginny pulled, but couldn't get away. "Ginny, if you ever notice Draco Malfoy acting strangely, I want you to come tell me, okay dear?" Ginny nodded nervously, she would have agreed to anything at that moment to get away from the woman. McGonagall let her go and she rushed to the door, yanking it open and dashing down the moving staircase until she reached the end of it and had to wait impatiently for it to finish descending to the bottom. As soon as her feet hit the floor Ginny ran all the way to the Greenhouse.


	5. Tests

A/N: Here it is, chapter 5! Hopefully some questions will begin to be answered in this chapters and the ones that follow…Not sure what else to say except enjoy!

x x x x x x x x x x x x x x

"Okay now, Ginny, what is another name for the ingredient aconite and what does it do?" Draco asked, reading off from the glossary in the back of her Potion's book.

"I don't know," she groaned in annoyance, closing her eyes. She was currently laying on the floor of the library, her feet propped up on the chair seat, staring at the ceiling and trying to avoid studying at all costs.

"Just try, Ginny. The exam is tomorrow and you don't want to fail."

"But I don't remember. My brain hurts. Can't we just go outside and play?" Draco felt sorry for Ginny, but he refused to let it show, knowing she would use that pity against him to get out of studying. They'd been trying for three days now to make her study, but it was practically impossible. A five year old had absolutely no sense of responsibility or time-management.

"It's a poisonous plant also known as…"

"Wolf…wolfsbane?"

"Yes!" They both smiled and clapped for her. Ginny grinned.

"So we're done now?"

"No." Draco said as Luna shook her head.

"Now, Ginny," Luna asked, taking the book from Draco, "what are the main ingredients of the Confusing Draught?"

"Ummm…Lovage! And…Scurvy grass?" Luna nodded. "And…and…I forgot the last ingredient."

"Sneezewort."

"Yeah! That."

"Is there any way to distinguish a Veritaserum potion?" Draco questioned.

"Why do I need to know this?" Ginny whined. "It's not like I'll ever use it."

The two glanced at each other silently, and Draco shook his head very quickly to warn her. He didn't know Luna very well, but he could guess, from her discretion, that she had realized he had yet to tell Ginny the truth, that she was missing 12 years of her life, that they were in the midst of a terrible war, and that she might need to know how to protect herself from things such as Veritaserum potion.

"I know you remember this Ginny. I told you myself" Luna pressed.

"Umm…you can't? Right?"

Luna smiled. "Why not?"

"Because…because it doesn't have a taste or a smell and it looks like water."

"Very good, Ginny."

Ginny sat up. "If you can't tell, how will you know if someone is using it against you?"

"Well…I don't know. I've never drunk it before." Luna stared out the window thoughtfully. "Do you know what it feels like, Draco? Have you read about it in the book by any chance?"

He gulped, sitting back in the chair uncomfortably. Of course he knew what it felt like to be under the influence of Veritaserum. His father had used it on him many times; the man had a private stash of the stuff. You felt horrible, helpless. You couldn't fight it, there was no way to. If the person only put a drop of it in your drink you might be able to resist it. To word your answers to their questions cleverly enough to hide the truth. But if there were three drops or more you were helpless. You started spilling everything like vomit. It kept coming and you had no control of it. Anything and everything, especially those things you would wish to keep secret, are exposed. Five drops were enough to cause a person to die of poisoning.

"I think we're done for now, Ginny," he said, not looking at either of the girls as he shut the book. Ginny sat up with a cheer.

"Can we go out and play now?"

"Sure." He rubbed his hands over his eyes tiredly.

x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x

Draco sat back on the grass, watching Ginny and Luna pick wildflowers next to the Forbidden Forest. He was exhausted from keeping an eye on Ginny and trying to force her to study, not to mention having McGonagall hounding his back. As soon as Ginny had left her first meeting with the Headmistress, was it only a week ago now?, she'd told him all of the strange things the woman had asked her. First, how she was doing in school, how she was feeling. Then, if she'd had any strange feelings lately, memories she didn't understand or perhaps dreams. Of course, Ginny didn't understand the meaning of this question in the slightest, but Draco wanted to slap the old woman for her foolishness. He was thankful Ginny, at least, the five-year-old one, wasn't a particularly good problem-solver, or else she would have put all these hints and clues together by now and realized the truth, which Draco had yet had the heart to tell her.

But most aggravating of all, the old woman had asked Ginny about him. Unfortunately, Ginny's friend Luna had turned out to be right. The only reason McGonagall was having Draco keep an eye on Ginny was because she was using the girl as a spy to gather information, likely something credible enough to get Draco kicked out of the school for good. Thankfully Ginny hadn't told her anything she could warp and accuse Draco with. But it wasn't that she was trying to get him kicked out of school that pissed Draco off the most. (Although, he really did want to stay here as long as possible. As long as he was hiding in Hogwarts he was safe from his father trying to round him up for the war effort. Then again, he'd though the same thing last year, and before he knew it he was recruited to kill Dumbledore.)

What really irritated Draco was the fact that the Headmistress, sworn to protect all of her students against harm, was using Ginny like this, and for all the woman knew, endangering her life by putting her in Draco's care! Not that Draco would ever do anything to hurt the girl, in fact, he knew he was growing fond of her company, despite how annoying it could be sometimes, but McGonagall thought the worst of him, and was still ready to sacrifice Ginny like a pawn in a game of chess, all for a greater cause. Which, when he thought about it in that metaphorical sense, wasn't that great a cause at all, for after all, he was merely a pawn of Voldemort's himself, not very threatening alone, despite what the woman may think.

"Hey! Draco! Haven't seen you in awhile." Draco was startled as a hand slapped down onto his shoulder, awakening him from his thoughts. He blinked a few times to bring himself back to reality and found he was staring at his friend Blaise. He gulped, feeling guilty. Did he even have the right to call Blaise a friend anymore? They were in the same house, they slept in the same room together every night, and together they avoided the rest of the Slytherins, those who hadn't been recruited yet, all of whom wanted to kill them. And yet he had been avoiding Blaise like the plague for weeks now, always finding excuses to get away from him, and always, always keeping Ginny as far away from the boy as possible. And if it weren't for Ginny's need of constant supervision, Draco would have long ago become consumed by his guilt. He didn't trust his friend. And it killed him.

"Hey," he answered weakly, trying to force a smile. "What's up?"

"Just finally got a chance to hang out with the elusive Mr. Malfoy. I hardly see you at dinner or between classes anymore, and by the time I come in you're already asleep. If I didn't know any better I'd think you were avoiding me."

Draco looked away from his friend's smiling, trusting face. "No. I've just been busy lately."

Blaise had apparently followed Draco's gaze over to Ginny and Luna. He whistled. "I was wondering if maybe it was a girl. I couldn't see you blowing me off for anything other than the finer of the species. I mean, there have been rumors going around, but I wasn't sure if I believed them."

"Rumors? What are you talking about?" Draco didn't bother to correct him in his assumption that Ginny was his girlfriend. He was too curious about these rumors. Were they slandering Ginny's good name?

"Just that you and the Gryffindor redhead were secretly going out. Oh, it's an awfully romantic story, rich bad boy and poor little good girl." Blaise faked a swoon, leaning his head on Draco's shoulder and staring up at him with large eyes like a lover. "But nothing can stop you when you're in the throes of passion, not even your family name! At least, that's the nice story."

"And the not-so-nice story?"

He didn't catch the odd look Blaise gave him. He was too occupied staring at Ginny to see the small smirk on his face as he observed Draco's reactions very carefully. "Well, I've heard all sorts of things. You're friends with benefits. You have angry sex to work out your sexual frustrations and hate for each other. She's a prostitute—"

"What!" Draco roared, grabbing Blaise's shirt collar and raising his fist.

"Whoah! Whaoh! I'm just the messenger, I didn't say any of these things, and besides, you asked! I never believed any of them anyway, seeing as it was always Pansy or one of her annoying friends who said it. It's not like she ever got over you dumping her."

Draco dropped Blaise's shirt and lowered his fist. He felt a horrible guilt rise up in him as he realized he'd almost just punched his best friend in the face, but he pushed it down, deciding to deal with it later. "Sorry for…my reaction. I just…I don't like it when people talk about her that way."

Blaise whistled once more, lifting an eyebrow. "So it's true then? You two are a thing?"

Draco's eyes widened as he realized how his words must have sounded. "No! We aren't. We're just…I'm just…tutoring her."

Blaise's face didn't change, but he nodded, as if he believed Draco. "Well, whatever. I can't say that I blame you. I mean, anything is a step up from Pansy, but damn, you really snatched the pick of the litter. Though, the litter she comes from is all scrawny redheaded men, so…Anyway, I have to go to class now. I'll see you at dinner?"

"Yeah. See you then." Draco watched as Blaise stood up, slinging his bag over his shoulder and giving Ginny one last look, a long one that made his blood boil, before sauntering off.

He didn't feel so guilty anymore.

x x x x x x x x x x x x x x

Draco was lounging in the library when he heard a loud squeal and felt the full force of a seventeen-year-old female lunge at him. Thankfully the chair he sat in was heavy enough to keep it from tumbling backwards, not that she weighed much, but she must have leapt from a good distance to get the air that she did. Her body slammed into his, briefly knocking the air out of him and making his world go black, and he patiently waited for it to return. When it didn't, he realized that he had his face fully planted in her cleavage.

As soon as this realization dawned on him the boy stood up, letting Ginny ungracefully fall from his lap to the floor below. His face was hot and probably bright red, but he was more concerned with getting as far away from her as possible. She didn't seem to realize his sudden discomfort, however, for she was standing beside him in an instant, a piece of parchment in her hands.

"Look, Draco! Look at my test! Look look!" She waved the parchment in front of his eyes so fast it became a blurr, and he had to snatch it out of her hands to get a good look. By now Luna had joined them, her hands behind her back and a small, knowing smile on her face.

Through all of the scribbling of answers Draco finally located what it was Ginny wanted him to look for. At the top of the paper was a B- written in purple ink by the new Potion's professor. Draco stared at it for a few minutes, trying to figure out what it meant. Then it dawned on him, and he began scrolling down the page, looking through all of the answers.

"How did you…" Every single multiple choice question was correct. She had only lost points on the essay because of her somewhat unorthodox grammar and, Draco now presumed, lack of confidence in her understanding of the material. Draco realized he himself hadn't had any confidence at all in Ginny either; he had assumed she would fail this test hands down. But she hadn't. She had gotten every single question right.

Draco looked up at Ginny's smiling face, his own gone slack, as he tried to figure out what the hell was going on in that brain of hers. She couldn't remember her childhood past her fifth birthday, but it would seem she had not lost any of her knowledge, or at least that it was still there, albeit hidden among her five-year-old thoughts, emotions, and temperament.

"How did you know the answer to these questions, Ginny?"

The girl shrugged, still smiling. "I dunno. I just looked at them, and the ones that didn't make sense I crossed out, see?"

"But…but how did you know if they would make sense or not?"

"I guess…I just kinda went with my…umm…instinct! Yeah."

He looked back down at the paper, then up at her, swallowing as he tried to figure out what this meant. "Draco, may I have a word with you?" Luna asked, saving him from his attempts to put a meaning to this new revelation.

"Sure. Great…great job Ginny. Here. You stay here. I'll be right back, okay?" The girl nodded, taking her paper and taking the seat Draco had just been occupying.

They stepped behind a bookcase where they were alone and out of the range of Ginny's hearing. "I think you know what this means, Draco."

"Umm…" He was hoping she would tell him.

"She clearly still has her memory, it's just trapped somewhere inside of her. She can still function just like a normal seventeen-year-old, she just can't remember what happened to her in the years between then and now. But I believe that she is mature enough."

"For…?"

Luna lifted an eyebrow, giving him a look as if it were obvious. "I'm not stupid, I've told you that before. I know you haven't told her that she's lost her memory. I don't know what strange story you've fabricated to prevent her from figuring it out, but I'm guessing it must have been pretty far-fetched and elaborate, that or she just hasn't bothered to look in a mirror lately and realized she doesn't have the body of a five-year-old." That was for sure. "You need to cut the crap and tell her the truth. Maybe then she can start trying to figure out what she's forgotten. If you just keep postponing it and lying to her, she'll never begin looking for her lost memories."

"I…I don't know. I had a good reason! You know that, right?" Luna nodded in understanding. "I didn't want to scare her. What if she becomes frightened? So frightened she never gets better? They can't find a magical cure for it, they don't even know what's wrong with her. What if she spends the rest of her life looking for memories that will never come back?"

"It's a risk, I know. But she can't spend the rest of her life believing she's still five. She has to know the truth. Even if, in the long run, her memories never do come back, at least she can start making new ones."

"Could you imagine? Trying to relive twelve years of your life? The worst years of your life?" He rubbed his head tiredly, missing the surprised look Luna gave him. "But I guess you're right. Then we can tell her to start trying to remember."

"Well, don't be too hasty. She needs to know what to look for in her memories, events from her childhood, physical changes in her friends and families and even herself, turning points in her life that caused her to become who she is now. But you don't want to overwhelm her with these things. We need to make sure she understands that it's okay if it takes time for the memories to come back, and that they will be confusing and often sporadic at first. We don't want to stress her out too much."

He nodded as Luna began walking back over to where Ginny sat. "But…"

She paused, looking back at him. "But?"

He shook his head. "Nothing."

With a shrug she left him to his thoughts. He could hardly word them even to himself.

But what if, when her memory returned, their strange friendship disappeared as quickly as it had come? What if she forgot all about her strange attachment to Draco? What if she forgot Draco entirely?


	6. Ginny's Bad Week

A/N: Yet again, I must apologize for the long wait. I'm beginning to sound like a broken record, I know, but school and life have kept me pretty busy lately. But I will finish this story, I promise you guys! So stick with me and I'll keep trying to update (hopefully weekly or bi-weekly) whenever I can. As always, I hope you enjoy the chapter and review!

x x x x x x x x x x x x x x

Ginny strolled down the hall with her books in her arms, staring at the floor as she thought. She had had a strange experience this morning. When she'd woken up she'd looked out the window to see the Ravenclaw team practicing on the Quidditch field for the next match. She stared at them for so long that she could imagine she felt the wind in her hair, the broom beneath her hand, and the thrill of flight. She stared down at her hand to see it clutching the handle of a broomstick, and when she looked up she was on the field with others flying around her. There was a dull roaring in her ears, but it was hard to hear over the sound of her heart pounding. And then a red ball came flying at her face and she caught it in her arms.

Ginny was shaken awake from the strange vision by her roommate bumping into her from behind. The girl apologized grumpily and gave her a glare, Ginny wasn't sure why but she guessed the girl just wasn't a morning person. Gin wondered if perhaps she had drifted off standing in front of the window, and she shrugged away the sensation before putting on her uniform.

"Well, well, if it isn't the littlest Weasalette. We need to talk, weasel."

Ginny looked up from the floor slowly to stare at the girl in front of her. She wasn't the prettiest thing, with short black hair and a squished up face. Behind her stood two other girls, though Gin didn't recognize any of them. "Hi." The redhead replied sweetly, smiling at them. "Do I know you?"

"Don't give me that shit, Weasel." Ginny gasped, and would have covered her mouth had her books not been occupying her arms. If her mother had heard Gin use that language, she would have gotten her butt whooped with a belt. Before she could scold the girl, however, she continued speaking. "What the hell do you think you're playing at, messing around with my man?"

"I'm sorry?" she replied in confusion. "I don't understand."

"You heard her, Weaselette. You've been hanging all over Draco Malfoy, and Pansy isn't going to stand for it!" This came from the girl to the right of whom Ginny presumed was Pansy.

"Oh." Ginny brightened. "Of course I have. Draco's my bestest friend in the whole wide world."

"Did you sniff one too many potions, Weasley? Draco isn't your friend. He hates your guts. And he's _my boyfriend_, so if I ever see you with him again, I'll tear that ugly red hair out of your stupid head, got it?"

"Why would you say something so horrible like that?!" Ginny yelled, tears springing to her eyes. She refused to let them fall, however. Growing up with six older brothers, she'd learned to be tough and not show weakness. But her brothers weren't here to defend her, and Pansy had backed a shaking Ginny into the corner by now. The girl balled up her ugly fists and swung at Ginny, who held her books up in defense. They flew to the floor with a series of loud thumps, leaving Ginny helpless before the three girls. She glared at them and held up her fists as well. She may be small, but she was quick.

"Pansy, there's someone coming!" one of the other girls whispered loudly. She turned and looked down the hallway with a frown, then back at Ginny. "This is your warning, Weaselette. Stay away from my boyfriend." Then the three were gone.

Gin picked up her books and went to class.

x x x x x x x x x x x x x x

"Oh Draco! I'm so happy to see you!" Ginny tackled the boy outside of the Great Hall, throwing her arms around his neck and squeezing him tightly. He held her uncomfortably as people walked by, staring at them.

"What's up, Ginny?" Draco asked the girl, setting her down on her feet. Luna ambled towards them slowly, glancing at Ginny questioningly.

"There were these mean girls and they said such horrible things to me! And they were gonna beat me up!" Ginny buried her head in Draco's chest, still clutching him around the waist.

"What did they say, Ginny?" Luna asked quietly.

"They called me names and they said I shouldn't hang out with Draco anymore. The really ugly girl, I forgot her name, she said Draco was hers and she would beat me up."

Draco sighed, closing his eyes. "Damnit Pansy. That girl still hasn't gotten over me. I'll talk to her, Ginny, and make sure she doesn't bother you again. Just ignore what she said."

Gin nodded, though she still looked troubled. "But there was something else she said that I don't understand. She said you weren't my friend, Draco. That you hated me. That's not true, is it?"

Draco bit his lip, glancing up at the ceiling, then at the wall. His eyes landed on Luna, who was giving him a look that clearly told him what she wanted him to do. He sighed. "Listen, Ginny. There's something I need to tell you. I…I haven't been completely honest with you."

Gin took the information surprisingly well. They grabbed dinner and went outside to talk by the lake, where they had more privacy. He told her about how she had lost her memory, how some sort of spell had gone awry or something, but he wasn't sure exactly where it had come from or what caused it. Draco explained that she was really seventeen, and that she had somehow forgotten twelve years of her life. Only McGonagall, Madame Promfrey, Luna, Draco himself, and her parents knew, though they had been informed that the best course of action would be to keep Ginny in school and hope her memory returned to her over time. Gin had a lot of questions about her life, and they answered what they could. When she asked about her brothers, Draco had to explain that most of them were off fighting in a war against the Dark Lord, something she was not happy to hear, though she was proud of them.

"So…I really am seventeen?"

"Yes, Ginny. And you'll get your memory back eventually, I'm sure of it," Luna comforted. "But you needed to know what to look for. Your memories will be strange and sporadic at first, I'm sure, but you've obviously obtained most of the knowledge you already learned."

"It's scary. I can't remember it. The last thing I remember before waking up in the hospital was my fifth birthday." She put her chin on her knees, staring at the sunset over the lake. "Now that I think about it, that nurse lady was saying weird stuff like that, about me losing my memory. I didn't understand what she meant so I just ignored her." After a long pause, Ginny asked, "What if I never remember? Ever again?"

"Then you'll just start making new memories, that's all. But the important thing is that now you know, and you can begin living your life where you left off." Luna smiled at her, giving Gin a gentle hug.

"Yeah, I guess. But that still doesn't explain what that Pansy girl said about you hating me. Does that have to do with my memory, too? Do you hate me, Draco?"

"No, I don't hate you, Ginny. But…our families don't get along. I guess at five years old you'd yet to discover that, or you would've known by now. Our parents do hate each other, mostly because my parents are bad people, but I'm not like them, not anymore. So just don't worry about that, okay."

"But why do our parents hate each other if we're best friends?"

Draco sighed, staring out at the lake. He didn't want to upset her any more by explaining that they'd never been friends. Draco was the last thing she saw before that bright light and she lost her memory, and he was the first thing she saw when she woke up. Maybe she put those visions together and assumed they were friends. He wasn't sure. But he knew he was happy to have her friendship, and he didn't want to lose it now by telling her the truth. They'd never known each other before school, and they'd never been friends, only enemies. He hoped she never remembered that part of her life. "I dunno, Ginny. Sometimes…people just have to hate each other. Because they're different. But we don't have to be like those people." He smiled at the girl, who returned it. He, however, miss the surprised look that Luna gave him.

x x x x x x x x x x x x x x

Ginny stood at the sink, scrubbing at her shirt, though the pumpkin juice was defiantly holding onto the white fabric, leaving a giant orange stain on the front, just between her boobs. As much as she hated bras and how uncomfortable they felt, she was glad she was wearing one today, so she didn't have to stand naked from the waist up in the cold bathroom, hoping another girl didn't walk in and see her. She cursed the pumpkin juice she'd been drinking for lunch, and wondered why they never seemed to serve anything else at this blasted school. Why pumpkin juice? It tasted nasty anyway, and milk or orange juice or tea for Merlin's sake would be much better, but those you had to request specifically, and you always got funny looks from the house elves.

As Ginny scrubbed she thought, something she'd been doing a lot of lately, about her lost memories. It had been a week since Draco had told her, and it plagued her every waking moment. She would sit and strain her mind until her head hurt, trying to remember what she had forgotten, and nothing would come. The more she wondered about her missing memories, her unknown life, the more depressed and stressed she became. It didn't help any that although she could do well enough on exams, at least ones with multiple choice questions, she struggled in class to follow what the teacher was saying, and always felt embarrassed when she was called on. Plus she didn't have any classes with either Luna or Draco, so she always felt lonely, especially when she thought of her parents and brothers so far off, and wondered how much they had changed. A strange feeling had come over her lately. She felt like she were imposing on someone else's life, trying to figure out as much about them so she could pretend to be this stranger and hopefully fool everyone into believing who she wasn't.

The door to the bathroom opened and a group of four girls came in, chattering to each other. They went immediately to the sinks, staring at themselves in the mirrors as they talked, fixing their hair or their makeup. She thought she recognized one or two of them from her own house, but she didn't know their names. Ginny sighed and decided to give up on the shirt. She would just wear it until she could get back to Gryffindor and put on a fresh one, though she'd probably end up late to her next class, not to mention she'd barely gotten to eat anything. She set the shirt on the sink and went to one of the stalls to use the potty, listening as they talked about boys and makeup.

Their conversation quieted until she couldn't hear anything but whispers and some giggles. There were a few hisses of yes and no. When she finished she went back to the sinks, washing and drying her hands. She reached for her damp shirt to put it on and found…nothing.

Ginny stared at the spot where her shirt had just been, wondering why it had suddenly decided to grow legs and walk off. She glanced around the bathroom, thinking perhaps she had simply misplaced it, or forgotten where it was. After all, she wasn't the best with remembering things, it would seem. But when she could see it nowhere, she turned instead to the girls, with a shy smile. "You didn't happen to see my shirt, did you?"

The girls giggled, and one of them held it up for her to see. "Oh, this one?"

She lit up. "Yeah. Thanks. I would've gone batty looking for the bloody thing." She reached out to take it, but the girl pulled it away.

"I don't know…I think it's a rather ugly shirt, don't you girls?" The girls behind her giggled again and nodded. "Not to mention, it isn't much use with this giant orange stain on it."

"Well, tha-that's okay." Ginny's smile had dropped, and she had the odd feeling she was on the wrong end of a joke she didn't understand. "If I could just have it bac—"

"In fact, I think it would look much better if it were…a tea kettle." The girl held up her wand and cast a spell under her breath. Before Gin's eyes her shirt transformed into a white kettle with an orange handle. "No, it's still pretty disappointing. All it does is sit there."

"Oh, I know, make it a rock," one girl said.

"No, a candle!" exclaimed another.

"How about a mouse?" the third girl piped up.

The girl holding Ginny's shirt-now-kettle smiled. "Yes, a cute little mouse. That's perfect!" She waved her wand again and this time Ginny's shirt became a mouse. A little white mouse, with an orange spot on it's back.

"Umm…can you please turn it back? I really need my shirt."

"Turn it back? But look at it. Isn't it cute? And besides, turning it back into a shirt would kill it. It would take away the life I've created. You don't want to be a killer, do you?"

"Well…no…but I'm sure it doesn't really work that way, and besides, I really need my shir—"

"Eww! The thing pooped on me!" The girl's hand jerked and the mouse fell out of it, tumbling to the floor. Ginny swooped forward to grab it but it raced away from her fearfully, between the feet of the many screaming, jumping girls, and right into a tiny mouse hole in the wall. Ginny stared at it in dismay.

"I…I really need a shirt to wear. Can you girls lend me one of yours?"

"Why should we? We're not the ones who lost it."

"Well, actually, you did. Turning it into a mouse and all. So I only think it's fair—"

"Why don't you just go to class like that, Weasley? You like attention, don't you? You'll love the attention all the boys will give you wearing just that bra."

"I…I really don't want any attention."

"But you must! After all, you hang all over Draco Malfoy like only a Slytherin slut would. Why else would you unless you wanted attention? Poor little Weasley girl ignored at home? Do you feel overshadowed like your six older brothers? I swear, your mom pops them out like…well…mice!"

Ginny glared at the girl, her fists clenching. "Don't you dare say that about my mother or I'll box your ears, you brat! Now give me my shirt back!"

"No. Go and find it, Weasley. We have to get to class." With a snarky smile the girl left, followed by her evil little friends. In her anger Ginny tried to chase after them, fully intending to punch at least one or two in the mouth, but they all got out the door before she could. She started to run out after them, but seeing the crowded hallway and hearing whispers around her, she remembered she was wearing only a bra. The girls laughed and a few others joined in, and Ginny dashed back inside the bathroom, her face red with embarrassment.

Ginny tried to coax the little mouse out of the mouse hole, but it had long since disappeared. She slumped against the wall of the bathroom, staring at the door forlornly, trying to decide what to do now. She couldn't go outside in just her underwear, and she didn't have a jacket to wear. But neither could she sit in the bathroom all day and night, waiting for someone to come rescue her. She became so distraught that she began to cry, and the more she cried the more she worried—about her missing shirt, her lost memories, her scattered family. She felt so confused and alone, and she just wanted to curl into a ball under the covers and close her eyes, hoping that when she opened them, everything would have magically fixed itself.

Ginny wasn't sure how long she sat there crying before a knock came on the bathroom door. She wondered who would knock for the bathroom, but she understood when it opened and a boy stepped in, shielding his eyes. "Not trying to be rude or anything, but I heard you crying and I would've felt bad leaving you here all alone. Are you…umm…decent?"

The redhead sniffled and looked up. "Not exactly. But it's okay, Blaise." She smiled at the boy, recognizing him immediately.

He dropped his hand, staring at her in surprise. "Ginny Weasley? What happened to you?" He politely kept his eyes from her chest as he stepped into the bathroom, the door sliding closed behind him.

"It was horrible! I was trying to clean my shirt because I got pumpkin juice on it and these awful girls came in the bathroom and they stole it and turned it into a mouse and it ran away and now I don't have anything to wear and I'm going to have to go outside in my bra and everybody's gonna laugh at me!" She said this all in one breath, and when she finished, he lifted an eyebrow in surprise.

"A mouse?" Gin nodded. The boy held his hand over his mouth, trying not to laugh. The redhead glared at him. "I'm sorry. I'm not trying to be rude, I just find the situation a little…amusing. I mean, not your situation, but a mouse? Sorry. I'm messing this all up. Look, you won't have to go outside in your bra. Here, you can wear my shirt, I've got plenty to spare." He began unbuttoning his shirt, the same white uniform one that everyone had, though his was much too large for her. When the boy took it off, revealing the dark skin of his muscular chest, Ginny felt an odd fluttering in her stomach. She looked away in embarrassment as he handed her the shirt. "Go ahead."

"What are you going to wear?" she asked, though she put on the shirt and buttoned it up anyway. She cared more about her own humiliation than his, and besides, he didn't have boobies.

The boy shrugged. "Nothing, I guess. I might get in trouble, but…hey, sounds like fun. I like a little adventure and wildness to spice up my life." He grinned, helping her up off the floor and picking up her backpack. "Maybe I'll even get the attention of that pretty lady friend of yours."

Ginny laughed, wiping at her eyes. "I doubt it. The only thing that gets Luna's attention are new finds about Crumple-Horned Snorkacks."

They joked and laughed all the way to her next class.


	7. Allies and Enemies

A/N: Here's chapter seven. It's a bit short, but I think I've finally figured out how the story will go from here, now I just have to set it up for the ending. Shouldn't be too many more chapters after this!

x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x

"Ginny, there you are. I've been—wait, what happened to your shirt?" Draco stared at Ginny in surprise. He'd remembered seeing her earlier in the day with a white button up on, like everyone at school had to wear as part of the regular uniform, but that one had been very tight on her, so tight the second button was almost ready to burst off. Now she wore a shirt that was much too large, draping loosely around her and hanging down almost to the bottom of her skirt.

"Oh. I spilled pumpkin juice on it during lunch. And there were these horrible mean girls and they took it from me…it's a long story. But your friend Blaise Zabini gave me his to wear."

"What?!" Draco stared at her in shock. Blaise had given Ginny his shirt? His mind began to whirl. Did that mean Blaise had seen her naked? He must have seen her with only a bra, at least. And had he put the shirt on her himself? Buttoned it up slowly, his fingers gliding across the smooth skin of her—Draco shook the image away, though he couldn't shake off his rising fury. "What did I tell you about him Ginny? I told you to stay away from him."

"But why?" Gin asked, tilting her head to the side in confusion.

Before Draco could answer, he heard a deeper, masculine voice ask, "Yes, Draco. Why?" The blonde looked up to see Blaise leaning against the wall. He must have just come around the corner of the corridor and overheard their conversation. Draco cursed himself, a twinge of guilt touching his heart, though it couldn't replace his anger. Speak of the devil and he will come, as the saying goes.

"I don't wish to speak of this right now."

"We need to, Draco. I know you've been avoiding me, and now I'm led to believe you actually hate me." Blaise's lips pursed, though his face was stoic. "I thought we were friends?"

"Ginny, please leave."

"But…aren't we going to dinner together?"

"You go on ahead. I'll catch up with you later." The girl shrugged and left, but not before giving Blaise a friendly smile that only made Draco's blood boil even more.

"So, care to explain this new revelation? Why, exactly, do you find me so threatening?"

Draco's teeth ground. "Who said I find you threatening?"

"You must, or you wouldn't be telling Ginny to avoid me. So please, explain yourself…or, allow me to guess." He smiled, crossing his arms over his chest. "You've somehow managed to snag the girl's heart, or at least another part of her anatomy, and now you're afraid if I get too close I'll use all of my suave seductiveness to steal her right out from under you. Honestly, Draco, if you wanted the spoils for yourself, all you had to do was say so."

He felt his fists clench in anger. It took all of Draco's energy not to throw a hex at his friend. Or ex-friend, anyway. "You talk about her like that one more—"

"Draco, my friend, what's gotten into you? Since when did you go around cavorting with our enemy? It's dangerous, you know that. If your father ever found out…well, let's not worry about that. My only question is, is she worth it?"

"What did you say?" he spit out each word slowly, syllable by syllable.

"Is she worth it? Is there actually anything substantial between the two of you? Do you actually have feelings for her, or are you just using her for an easy shag?"

He snapped. He didn't mean to. Draco had been controlling himself up until then. But as soon as those words left Blaise's mouth he snapped. He just reacted, didn't even think, which was probably a good think or he would have hexed Blaise. Instead his body moved of its own accord, a slight twitch of his arm the only warning of what was about to happen, before he pulled back and swung his balled-up fist at Blaise. He felt the impact and the sickening crunch of Blaise's nose breaking under his hand. Blaise fell to the floor, clutching at his face, blood gushing down his chin.

After a few seconds of pain he was finally able to speak. "Bloody hell, you've got it bad, haven't you Draco?" His voice had changed. It was no longer goading and sarcastic. Draco didn't even realize until that moment that Blaise hadn't sounded anything like his usual self. He'd been rude and crude, and the Blaise Draco had always known was sophisticated and polite. He felt the twinge of some realization, but couldn't quite grasp at it.

"Don't you ever speak of her like that again! Ginny is…she's the smartest, kindest…she's honest. She's the only person I've ever met that's honest, to the point that it hurts…and…and she's the best thing that's every happened to me! If you talk about her like that again, I'll kill you!"

As his words echoed around them, Blaise stared up at him in shock. For a long time there was silence, then he said, "You love her." It wasn't a question, more of a statement.

"What are you talking about? Of course not! She's just a friend."

"That she may be, but you still love her." Blaise began to chuckle, but it seemed to cause him pain, and he just clutched at his nose and wheezed instead. "That hurt like hell, Draco. But at least it got the truth out of you."

"What…what do you mean?"

"Honestly, what's wrong with you? Did you think I meant any of those things I said? But I knew there was no other way to get your attention."

"What are you talking about?" Draco repeated, staring at him in confusion.

"For the last month you've been getting more and more distant, until you were outright ignoring me. And whenever I tried to hang out with you you were cold to me. It didn't help any that you'd seemed to replace me with Ginny Weasley and her little blonde friend. I'll admit it, Draco, I was jealous. I felt like you'd discarded me for someone else. And I knew the only way to get your attention would be to verbally attack the only person that you seem to care about anymore. I'll admit, for awhile there I did hate her for stealing all of your attention, but when I talked to her in the bathroom I realized just what a nice, sweet girl she was. So it must have been something on _your_ side, something wrong with _you_. But I never realized you were in this deep with her. You're in love with the girl and she doesn't even see you as anything but a friend." He sighed. "I'm sorry for taunting you like this, but I had to know what was going on."

Draco slumped to the floor, staring up at the ceiling. He'd never felt like a bigger idiot and asshole than he did now. "You were just trying to get me to tell you what was going on between us?...I see." He sighed, closing his eyes. "I should have realized you were acting so out of character but…"

"But you were too blinded by her. I understand. But Draco, what I said earlier is true. You do realize how dangerous it is to be in love with her. Not only to you, but to her."

Draco opened his eyes, staring at his friend. "I'm not. I told you…" He saw the skeptical look on Blaise's face. "It's not like that. It's not what you think."

"That's what everyone says when they're in love. Tell me, how is your relationship any different than any other couple, besides the fact that your parents hate each other?"

Draco shook his head. "We don't have a relationship. It really isn't what you think. You wouldn't even believe what is really going on."

"Try me."

He sighed. "Okay, but remember, you asked for it."

He told Blaise about the day they had been outside, enjoying the last bit of sun before fall, when they'd noticed Ginny Weasley sitting alone by a tree, reading some trashy romance. They'd decided to tease her, being bored and having nothing better to do. There'd been a flash of light, and they'd all been thrown in opposite directions. Blaise had been fine, as had Draco, though he had a nasty bump on his head, but Ginny was knocked unconscious. Draco took her to the hospital, and when she woke up, she had no memory of her life before her fifth birthday, and for some strange reason, believed he was her best and closest friend in the world. Draco told Blaise about how McGonagall had put him in charge of keeping an eye on Ginny, and how he'd found out later it was just a ploy to spy on Draco and see if he was up to any Death Eater activities. Since her accident she'd been back to the woman on three separate occasions, and Draco was smug in the knowledge that the most information she'd gained was what they'd eaten for dinner or talked about while they'd hung out after class. When Draco mentioned Luna discovering Ginny's secret, Blaise perked up and listened more intently, asking a lot of questions about the girl. And when he told him how Luna'd convinced Draco to finally tell Ginny the truth, Blaise was shocked that for a whole month he'd led the girl to believe she was actually five years old.

"But why did you find me so threatening, Draco? Why didn't you want me around?"

His lips pursed and he felt his embarrassment rising. "It was just…the way you looked at her. The way you talked about her, like she was just some other girl. Ginny isn't some other girl, Blaise. She doesn't think like we do. She still has the emotional stability of a five year old. She's intelligent, I'll give her that, but she's terrible at social interaction. If you'd made a move on her, not knowing her condition…she wouldn't even understand what was happening until it was too late."

"Draco, I never felt anything for Ginny. And I still don't. She's your friend, and she's cute, I'll admit it, but she's not the one that was catching my eye."

"What do you mean?"

"This girl has made you so blind. It's her friend, Luna." Draco noticed a blush rise to Blaise's face. "She's just so…different. Interesting. Talk about not thinking like other girls." He smiled. "I like her, but I'm too shy to talk to her."

"Blaise? Shy?!" Draco stared at his friend in shock, then began to laugh. "Never thought I'd see the day." Blaise began to chuckle, but groaned in pain instead. "Why don't we take you to the infirmary to fix that broken nose? Sorry about that, by the way."

"No problem. But you owe me. Big time," Blaise said as Draco pulled him to his feet.

"What do you want?" he asked with a sigh.

"Stop ignoring me from now on. I'd appreciate if I felt like we were friends again, y'know. Oh, and introduce me to her. That Luna girl. Put in a good word for me."

"You're awfully demanding," Draco teased.

"Who's the one with the broken nose here?"

"Fine, but you'll regret it, trust me. She's batty. Funny, but batty."

x x x x x x x x x x x x x x

Draco sat down next to Ginny and Luna at the Ravenclaw table, Blaise behind him. "Ginny, Luna, I would like to introduce you to my friend Blaise. Blaise, Ginny and Luna."

Blaise nodded to the two and sat beside Draco. "With all of us being from different houses, Draco and I except, it's a wonder the school isn't in an uproar that we are sitting together at dinner."

"Don't you ever pay attention?" Draco asked. "They were, especially the first few weeks. Whenever I sat at Gryffindor table all of the Gryffindors looked like they were going to have a conniption fit and whenever Ginny sat at our table they looked at her like she was the first girl they'd seen in years. We finally decided that the Ravenclaw table was the best place for us to eat together, seeing as they, at least, are a bit more civilized and neutral."

"Hey Draco, can you read the letter I wrote to my parents? I wanted it to sound right, but I know I don't speak like most adults do." Ginny removed a folded up piece of parchment from her bag and handed it to him. "I thought it might help me to get my memories back."

Mum and Dad,

I'm writing to you because my friends Luna and Draco told me what had happened. They explained that I lost my memory. I understand now why you wrote earlier. The Headmistress must have told you. I haven't been able to remember much. Please tell me as much about myself as you can. So I can remember more about myself. And can you send some pictures of yourselves and Ron, Percy, Bill, Charlie, Fred, and George? I can't imagine them as grown-ups, but I guess I'd better. Maybe by Christmas time when I see you I'll remember something.

Love always,

Gin

Draco swallowed, feeling guilty. He wondered how confused and lost Ginny must feel. Did it scare her that she couldn't remember who she was? He wondered if he would even be able to believe it if someone told him his memories had been erased. He would probably just go into denial. After all, it was hard to imagine that everything you thought you knew and believed was wrong.

"It's good, Ginny. Your grammar is fine, your parents will understand I'm sure. Can I just make one change to it?" She nodded. Draco took out his quill, dipping it in the ink and placing it to the paper. He blotted out his name. After all, Draco wasn't a very common name, and if her parents noticed it and connected it to him, he could be in deep trouble. "Alright. We'll mail it out tonight."

x x x x x x x x x x x x x x

Later that evening, after helping Ginny to mail her letter and then walking her to her House, Draco waited in the Slytherin common room for her. When it had finally emptied and she walked in he stood from the couch in front of the fire. Draco turned to look at Pansy, disgust on his face. She lifted an eyebrow as Blaise closed the door behind her and leaned against it, trapping her. She couldn't leave without going past Blaise and couldn't make it up to the Girl's dorms without Draco stopping her. "To what do I owe this pleasant surprise, Drakey?" she asked in that annoying high pitched voice of hers as she stripped off her expensive fur jacket and slung it over a chair.

"You know why I'm here."

"I would assume it's to sleep, seeing as this is Slytherin, your house. Or have you forgotten that? Did you get lost and try to go to Gryffindor commons?" She smirked at him over her shoulder. "Don't think we haven't noticed Drakey. You were already a traitor for refusing the Dark Mark. Now you're an embarrassment on top of that."

"I don't give a shit what you think of me. But you'll stop harassing Ginny."

"Ginger? Is that that little orange-haired hussy's name? I guess it's pretty fitting." Draco ignored her obvious mistaking of Ginny's name. "Drakey dear, once you start calling the Mudbloods by name you know you're in deep."

Draco didn't bother to correct her that Ginny was a fullblood. She was still better than Pansy, no matter what was in her blood. Pansy had sauntered over to him by now and placed her hand in what he assumed was supposed to be a provocative position on Draco's chest. He leaned in, making his face and voice as menacing as possible when he whispered, "You'll back off, or you'll regret it, Parkinson."

"Oh, Draco." She sighed sadly, leaning her head against his chest. "Where did we go wrong? What did I do to turn you to your enemy's arms?"

He snorted. "Parkinson, my relationship with Ginny has nothing to do with you. Though, it doesn't help that you're a stupid, spoiled whore."

She backed up, glaring at him. "Then do you love her, Draco? Answer me, honestly." He opened his mouth, but couldn't find the words to speak. For the first time in her miserable life, Pansy Parkinson had left him speechless. "Your silence is answer enough." She turned away from him, heading for the stairs, but paused. Without looking at him Pansy whispered, "I wonder what will happen to her when the war begins...How she will be punished for your love?"

"If that's meant as a threat, you won't live to see the war begin." She shrugged and walked away, leaving Draco to his thoughts.


	8. Ginny Plays Quidditch

A/N: Ahh, another chapter finally. Well, I've got the story from here figured out, it's all just a matter of getting it written down, but hopefully (busy schedule allowing) it won't be too much longer. I know Draco's birthday is in June according to hp-lexicon, but I'm making it December in this story for my own purposes. Enjoy the chapter!

x x x x x x x x x x x x x x

Draco stared out the window listlessly, trying to avoid doing any more homework. He knew he probably wasn't setting the best example for Ginny, who had just been sitting next to him avoiding her homework as well and complaining of stomach pains in the hopes she wouldn't have to do anymore before escaping to the bathroom, but right now he was too tired to care. He watched as the red and gold leaves fell to the ground and wondered when the seasons had changed. Was it really November already? He'd hardly remembered Halloween, it had been so uneventful, though Ginny didn't seem to agree with him. He recalled how her face lit up that night at dinner when plates full of Halloween treats and candy appeared on the table before them. She'd dressed up even, though she was one of few, and he'd realized that to her it was the first Halloween dinner she'd ever had at Hogwarts.

But Draco was too troubled to even think about Ginny right now. He'd gotten an upsetting letter from his father that morning, one that reminded him of his impending birthday. In less than a month he would be eighteen, and then he would no longer be under the protection of the law. Of course, it was all bad. By turning eighteen the law could no longer protect and hide him forever from his father, but he would also, at the same time, be free of his father. He would be a man. And that meant he had the choice to say no to the Dark Lord, and consequently have to duel his father for his life. The thought scared him shitless.

Draco sighed once more, and Luna, never one to miss any subtle detail, set down the book she'd been reading and opened her mouth to ask him what was wrong. Before she could say anything, though, Ginny came running into the room with tears streaked down her face and grabbed Draco, crying bitterly.

All thoughts of his father were washed from his mind when he saw Ginny's distraught face, and he immediately stood, grabbing her protectively and looking around to see if there was any immediate danger. Had she been hurt? Had someone attacked her? Made fun of her? In some other way caused her harm? He felt his blood boil and his hand clench to his wand.

"Ginny, what's wrong?" Luna asked, also standing.

"I…I need to the go to the hospital wing," Ginny sniffled, looking at Draco when she answered.

Immediately he began to run his hands over her, checking for injuries. Nothing felt broken or bloody. She looked fine except she was crying and bent over, clutching at her abdomen. "Where are you hurt?"

"My…my stomach…No…below my stomach. It hurts real bad. And I'm bleeding. I'm going to die!" Ginny began wailing, and more than one face turned in their direction in curiosity.

"Where are you bleeding? Show me."

Ginny did as he commanded without question and lifted up her skirt, right there in front of everyone. Draco was startled and snatched it back down before anyone noticed. "Your leg?"

She shook her head, one arm still on her lower stomach while the other held the hem of her skirt. "No…my…my…girly bits!" There was a sudden stillness in the air as his brain tried to process what that meant. His eyes widened as he stared down at the section of Ginny's skirt where he assumed her...girly bits…were hiding. Suddenly the image of said girly bits came into his mind, and, unsure if he was repulsed or turned on (or repulsed at being turned on) a sound that he wasn't entirely sure was his own escaped his lips as he dropped her skirt from his hand and jumped away from her like her touch burned him. He subsequently knocked over the table they'd been sitting at and fell flat on his ass, but he didn't mind so much as long as that put more distance between them.

"L-L-Luna…would you mind…talking…Ginny…girly things…" he mumbled incoherently, waving his hands at Ginny as he quickly stood up and brushed himself off. "I've gotta…yeah…"

As he dashed for the bathrooms, he wondered if he were going to throw up or pass out. He really shouldn't have reacted that way. Girls got their monthlies all the time…every month, in fact. But the thought of Ginny on hers made him suddenly realized once more that she was a woman. A full grown woman. Who was currently bleeding out of her vagina. Was he being an inconsiderate bastard by not addressing her problem and explaining it to her? Maybe. But Luna would do a better job than him anyways. Was it wrong of him to suddenly be quite aware that Ginny had a vagina at all? She'd had one all along. In fact, half the population of the world had one. Or many, anyway. But the fact that she'd blatantly announced presence of said vagina made him suddenly very uncomfortable.

He turned faucet on cold and ran his hands in it, splashing his face. Why, exactly, should Draco be worked up anyway? This was a natural part of every woman, he'd known that for years. And he knew she was woman. He'd known that since he'd known her. So why did it suddenly seem to surprise him so much? Draco was very, very confused.

x x x x x x x x x x x x x x

Ginny sat in her bedroom, staring at the stuff Luna had laid out in front of her. After Draco had run away, Luna, who'd been laughing so hysterically she'd nearly fallen on the floor, had decided the best course of action was to accompany Ginny to Gryffindor to make sure she had "supplies," as she'd put it, explaining all the way. Apparently, bleeding out of one's girly parts was perfectly normal, and girls did it every month. Ginny begged her to make it stop, but Luna said she couldn't, it was part of nature and every woman had to deal with it. When they'd arrived at Ginny's room she'd told her everything she needed to know and showed her how to line her panties so they didn't get stained. Apparently Ginny had had the napkins (she wasn't sure why they were called these, they looked and felt a lot more like diapers) for doing such in the bottom of her trunk all along, as well as a huge potions bottle full of purple liquid that would take the pain away. Ginny was about to drink the whole bottle when Luna snatched it away, warning her that more than a few milliliters could make her sick, and downing the bottle would definitely killed her. She'd been careful to measure out the exact amount after that, and was happy when its warm liquid immediately spilled into her stomach and began to soothe the pain in her abdomen and lower back.

Now that Ginny had cleaned up, changed her clothes, and taken care of the pain, she and Luna headed downstairs, back to the common room. Although it was okay to have visitors from different houses over, some of the Gryffindors stared at them strangely, and she wanted to return to the library to see if Draco was still there. She felt bad for leaving him. Just as they landed at the bottom of the staircase, though, Ginny was stopped by an unfamiliar voice.

"Ginny! There you are! I've been looking all over for you." Ginny looked up from her conversation with Luna to stare at the strange boy that was talking to her. She'd finally learned to deal with the fact that many people seemed to know her, even if she didn't recognize them, and so she politely stood there and waited for him to continue speaking so she didn't have to play guessing games as to who he was. "Where have you been? Practice started a week ago and nobody's been able to find you! We'd thought maybe you'd quit, but you were still on the roster. You aren't going and giving all of our secrets away to that nasty Slytherin you've been hanging out with, are you?"

"Practice?" Ginny asked.

"Quidditch practice, Ginny. Duh. We may not be having any matches this year because of the war and the serious lack in student body, but we're still going to stay in shape and practice practice practice so we can beat those bloody Slytherins next year, if there not all dead by then, that is."

"I…I'm on the Quidditch team?" Ginny couldn't believe it. She'd always dreamed of playing Quidditch, but her mum wouldn't let her play with her brothers because she said Ginny would get hurt. And whenever she'd asked her brothers to train her, they'd all laughed and said a girl couldn't play anyway. She'd been stealing their brooms for months and practicing flying on them, but she was still clueless as to how to actually play. She wanted to be a Chaser, but that was hard to do with a pitiful old red ball that just sat there and nobody to throw it at you.

"…on the Quidditch team? What are you drunk? Are you even listening to me? Ginny? Hello?!" Ginny looked back up at the boy.

"What?"

"I said practice starts in ten minutes, and I'd better see you on the field or you're doing laps for the next month! Now get that cute arse of yours down there, it won't do any good sitting on a couch getting lazy. Go on!"

"But how—"

"Oh, Ginny, won't you let me see you practice? I think it would be really interesting and I'd love to cheer you on." Luna winked at her. "If that's okay with your coach, of course."

The boy examined Luna slowly from head to toe, stroking his chin. "You're a Hufflepuff, aye? How do I know you're not just trying to steal our tactics and give them to your house?"

"Because, I don't know the first thing about Quidditch and I don't really care to learn. I just want to be there to support Ginny."

"Ehh, fine. But hurry up."

"But—"

"Come along, Ginny, you heard him." Luna rushed her out of the commons room and into the corridor. "I wanted to go with you because I knew you wouldn't remember where the Quidditch pitch was or how to get there," Luna explained. "Also, I do want to cheer you on."

"Oh…well…thank you."

Luna smiled at her and nodded as they headed out to the Quidditch pitch.

x x x x x x x x x x x x x x

Two hours later Ginny was exhausted. She'd already been tired, apparently a side effect of her monthly bleeding, and now she could barely even fly straight. Once she'd finally gotten to the pitch and Luna had shown her where the locker room was so she could change into her uniform, she'd been five minutes late. Her coach (how he'd gotten there before her she was unsure) had yelled at her and made her do five laps, along with the rest of the team. They groaned and glared at her, but that was only the beginning.

When he realized she'd forgotten all of their previous formations and tactics, he continued to punish her along with everyone else. He yelled constantly and had no problem with making comments about her gender that she was certain weren't quite appropriate, and by now she was cranky and tired and just wanted to go inside and take a hot bath before crawling into bed. It didn't help any that it was now pouring down rain, clouding her vision and soaking her to the bone with the cold water. She could hardly hear her coach over the sound of the thunder, and just tried to follow what the other Chasers were doing. When they flew closer to hear him better, she followed suit.

"Alright, I want to practice that tactic one more time. This time, Ginny, I want you to fly high. Josh and Angela will try to knock you from your broom. Don't fumble the ball this time when you catch it, understand?" Ginny nodded, her wet red hair falling into her face. She pushed it back. "Alright, go!"

It was strange that she'd only been practicing flying for a few months before and had barely gone five meters off the ground, yet when she flew now it felt as natural as walking. The heights didn't help any, though. They soared higher into the air, so high Ginny almost felt nauseous, and whenever she looked down she realized she was almost twenty meters off the ground with nothing but a rickety old broom between her legs to keep her from falling. She heard a yell and looked up, pursing her lips. She had to focus.

Ginny steeled herself as a boy, she couldn't remember his name, through the Quaffle at her. She reached forward, her broom moving with the bend of her body, and caught it. She almost fumbled and dropped it with her hands soaking wet from the rain, but managed to hold on, cradling it in her arms close to her chest. Then two of her teammates came flying at her to attack, and she remembered this was the part where she got the ball to the other side and threw it through the hoop. She sped up, grabbing onto her broom with one hand for dear life, afraid it would take off out from under her as if it had a mind of its own. She managed to dodge the first one, but the second person slammed into her and tried to steal the ball. Not this time. She was tired of getting yelled at, tired of failing her team, and just plain tired in general, and all she wanted was to do it right this time so they could go back inside and she could go to sleep. Ginny gripped the ball tightly in her hands and bent over it. She tried to get away from the other girl, Angela, but she was relentless, and continued to fly right beside Ginny. They were nearing the hoops now and if Ginny didn't get away from her, when she threw the ball Angela would just steal it.

She decided to try something new. Ginny suddenly reared up, clutching to the broom with both her free hand and ankles, and flew straight upwards into the low, dark clouds above. Angela was thrown off for a moment in her confusion, but quickly followed Ginny and caught up. But not for long. Once in the clouds they were both blinded, and all Ginny could see around her was gray fog, and all she could feel on her skin was cold rain. She turned in the direction she thought was down and kept going, and when she exited the cloud cover she was right on top of the hoops. Ginny threw the ball with all her might and was pleased to see it soar through the hoop effortlessly.

Before she could even smile at her victory, Ginny heard a loud boom, as if an explosion had gone off right by her ear. Her vision suddenly went white, and she felt weightless. Panic settled into her stomach as she wondered what was going on, but in only seconds she had passed out, and knew no more.

x x x x x x x x x x x x x x

Ginny woke up in a bed with a pounding headache. The place looked oddly familiar, all ugly white curtains, sheets, and ceiling. There was a humming sound in the background, and her vision was blurred around the edges. After a few minutes, though, it cleared, and the humming became more distinct. She realized it was the sound of a voice, or rather two voices.

"Ahh, she's beginning to wake up. Ginny Weasley? How are you feeling?" Ginny looked over at the voice. When her vision focused she found herself looking at the face of Headmistress McGonagall. "You took quite a fall from that broom there. It was a good thing your friend Luna was there. Her spell caught you from hitting the ground."

"What…what happened?" Her throat hurt and her voice sounded hoarse.

"Apparently you, or your broom rather, got struck by a bolt of lightning. It knocked you out and you fell off of it, but Ms. Lovegood stopped you from being hurt any worse than you already were. Then she and your teammates brought you here."

"Luna? Where is she?"

"She left last night after you were seen to, and was here just a few minutes ago, but said she would return when you woke up with some other friends of yours who wanted to visit."

"Last night?"

"Yes, you've been out since then. It's Sunday afternoon now. We're glad you finally came to." Minerva smiled at the girl and placed a hand on hers. "You had me quite worried. Tell me, what were you doing out there on a broom?"

"I was practicing," Ginny stated simply, as if it were obvious.

"Yes, I realize that, but you really should have asked for either my or Madame Promfrey's permission first, Ginny. With your condition, you could have been seriously injured. You almost were. Flying is very dangerous when you've lost as much memory as you have."

"I enjoyed it." Well, it wasn't completely true. She did like the flying part, but her coach bossing her around, the rain, and her period all had made her pretty miserable by the end. But she didn't like the headmistress, and she didn't want her knowing that she hadn't been enjoying herself.

"I've come not only to check up on you, but to see how you've been doing. Have you had anymore memories lately, Ginny?" Ginny shook her head. The headmistress sighed. "I am beginning to worry. I've had Madame Promfrey looking all over for some sort of magical cure to what has happened to you, but she's yet to find one. She still hasn't even diagnosed how it happened. A bump to the head would have been easily fixed, but this was more, this was some sort of spell gone awry. And it's one that we don't know of, possibly Dark Arts." McGonogall pursed her lips and stared down her long nose at Ginny. "I wanted to ask you about that…When you were brought here in September, you were accompanied by Mr. Malfoy. Do you think it is at all possible he might have cast a spell on you to make you forget your memories? Did you see him doing anything unlawful he might have wanted covered up? Has he threatened you in any way?"

"What are you talking about?" Ginny asked her, her temper rising. "Draco would never do anything to hurt me! He's my best friend!"

"Why, exactly, do you believe he's your best friend, Ginny?" McGonogall stared at her in confusion. "Has some part of the spell he cast on you made you believe so?"

"He's my best friend because he is! Because he always has been! Why do you keep asking these questions about him like he's some sort of criminal?"

"Yes, I've been wondering that myself, Headmistress." McGonnogal whipped around, staring at Draco in shock. "Oh, I'm sorry, was I interrupting a private conversation?"

"Yes, you were. Not that I'd expect any better from a Malfoy." The headmistress stood, glaring at him with unhidden hatred. "And why shouldn't I question her? With your history, Mr. Malfoy, I would have you kicked out of this school if it weren't for this damn wartime law forcing me to protect all underaged wizards, regardless of their background." She crossed her arms. "But you won't be underage for much longer, and once you're eighteen, if you make a single slip-up, I'll be certain you never set foot in this school again."

Draco's stare was icy and unflinching. "So glad to know I have such special privilege."

"What are you doing here, Mr. Malfoy?"

"I'm visiting a patient and friend of mine. Is that illegal suddenly?"

"Not if she doesn't want you here. Ginny, if you want me to make this boy leave, you let me know right now. I'll make sure he never bothers you again."

Ginny stared at the woman, wondering if she were insane. Suddenly, her temper flared, and she didn't bother to keep it controlled. "Why would I want him to leave? I already told you, he's my best friend!" The woman opened her mouth to argue, but Ginny cut her off. "I'm tired, I'm sore, my vagina is bleeding, and I've been yelled at enough today, or yesterday, or whatever it was, and I'm bloody tired of it! Just because I've lost my memories doesn't give you a right to keep pushing me around and harassing Draco! The only person I want to leave here is you!"

The woman stared at her in open-mouthed shock, then straightened up. "I will chock up this little outburst to the potions in your system and not deduct points from your house, but I suggest you learn to watch your tongue, as I am your headmistress." The woman turned and walked towards the door. Draco didn't bother to hide his pleased smile. McGonagall glared at him and harrumphed, but left all the same, brushing past him with her back ramrod straight. After she'd left the room it felt as if a rubberband had snapped. All of the tension between the two of them drained away and Draco slumped down in the chair next to Ginny's bed in exhaustion. Suddenly realizing what she'd done, Ginny's hand clamped over her mouth in shock. "I can't believe I just said that! My mum would whoop me if she heard me using that sort of language, especially in front of an adult!"

He chuckled. "Don't worry about it. Besides, it was bloody brilliant watching her reaction. Here, I bought you something." He handed a bag to her.

"Chocolates! Oh, thank you so much Draco!"

He smiled, tucking her hair behind her head. "Think nothing of it. Luna and Blaise will be arriving soon, though I can't imagine what's taking them so long." He glanced at his watch. "Either way, what would you like to do tonight while you're bedridden?"

Ginny pondered this for a moment, then smiled. "Let's tell ghost stories!"

x x x x x x x x x x x x x x

Four hours later Ginny huddled in her bed, wrapped around Draco's arm, as she listened to Blaise tell yet another scary ghost story. Luna sat next to him with a smile on her face and occasionally added in little remarks to make it even more frightening, or sometimes just strange, after all it was Luna. The sun had long since set and they'd lit candles to see by, which only added to the spooky effect, casting shadows on their faces and the walls. When Blaise screamed at her, mimicking an attacking monster and signaling the end of the story, Ginny yelped and clutched Draco even tighter.

Draco couldn't say he minded. Her body was small and warm and soft, and he would have gladly crawled into the bed next to her, had there been space, and cuddled up with her to keep her safe from the ghosts and monsters. Of course, all of their stories had actually attracted a few of the school's more playful ghosts, who had joined in in scaring Ginny witless, though continually reassured her that they were (mostly) harmless.

But despite how warm and innocent she looked now, Draco found himself wary of Ginny. Earlier, when she'd told off Headmistress McGonagall, he'd tried to brush it off as nothing, but the more he reflected on it, the more he noticed little details. Like the subtle change in Ginny's tone of voice and her suddenly very large, very explicit language. He'd seen how even her eyes seemed to take on a new light, as if there were a totally different person sitting in that bed yelling at McGonagall than there was now, clutching to him tightly and being scared by silly stories.

Even though he didn't want to voice it, he knew what it meant. In that brief instant, if only for a few seconds, Ginny's old, fiery self had returned. It had disappeared just as quickly, and she hadn't even noticed the change, but Draco had. He'd spent too long with her this past month to not notice it.

Madame Promfrey stood from where she'd been sitting on Ginny's left, trying to look stern, though it was obvious she'd clearly been enjoying herself. She'd let them stay long past visiting hours, and Draco realized working alone in the infirmary all day, often with no patients at all for long stretches of time, must be a lonely job. She nodded to the door and put on her most professional voice. "Alright now, all of you, and I mean all of you," she glanced at the ghosts, "it's time for both Ginny and me to get some sleep. And yourselves too. She may not have school tomorrow, but you bunch certainly do!" She pointed at Draco, Luna, and Blaise. She'd been confused at first by Ginny's odd collection of friends from different houses, but once she'd spent a few minutes with them, she'd found them growing on her, especially with Luna's constant stream of quirky and intrigued questions about medicine and Blaise's suaveness that would make any girl swoon. "Go on now, get! You can come back and see her tomorrow!"

They began to leave, the ghosts disappearing into the walls and Luna and Blaise heading towards the door after saying goodbye to Ginny. Draco was finding it harder to leave, as Ginny was now scared from all the ghost stories and wanted him around to keep her company. He also found he didn't _want_ to leave so much himself. Finally he disentangled her limbs from his and tucked her into her hospital bed, stroking her hair.

"I'll be back tomorrow Ginny, you just focus on feeling better. She'll probably even let you leave after tomorrow, though I think she'd miss all the company." He smiled up at the nurse, who tried to look stern but only seemed a bit embarrassed. She headed into the back room to prepare for bed, allowing Draco a few moments alone with Ginny. For some reason, he felt like he'd been wanting that all day.

Draco stared down at Ginny, and felt mesmerized by her. Her soft, golden skin seemed to almost glow in the candle light, her bright red curls contrasted sharply with the white hospital sheets, and the gown she wore did little to hide her voluptuous breasts. But when she looked up at him, that's when he really felt as if she'd taken his breath away. Her light brown eyes were the most beautiful he'd ever seen. They were so full of life and emotion and innocence. He wanted to scoop her up in his arms and protect her forever.

Instead, Draco found himself leaning forward. When he realized he was staring at her lips, he quickly recharted his course. He pressed his lips against her forehead, closing his eyes. For a few moments he stood there like that, then stepped away. "Good night, Ginny."

As he left, he faintly heard her whisper, "Good night, Draco." Just before the door closed, he saw her staring at him in shock, her cheeks pink.


	9. Hogsmeade

A/N: Ahh, here is chapter nine finally. I actually had this done over a week ago but just hadn't put it up yet because of my busy week. Anyways, hope you enjoy! Only two or three more chapters now until the end of the story!

x x x x x x x x x x x x x x

Ginny rummaged through her drawers, trying to find something to wear with her new dress. Draco had bought it for her months ago, but she hadn't actually had an opportunity to wear it yet. Now that it was the end of November, they were all going to Hogsmeade together to enjoy the town before winter break. Draco had seemed moody and quiet lately, and she hoped their trip lightened him up some. She also hoped she some alone time with him.

She found a locket buried at the bottom of her drawer and pulled it out, staring at it. It didn't look familiar, and she wondered where she'd gotten it from. She held it by the golden chain, letting it spin in the light. When she looked up, there was a boy standing in front of her, a friendly smile on his face. She'd never met him before, at least not that she remembered; he had scraggly black hair, bright emerald green eyes, and the strangest scar running across his forehead. The room was warm, a fire burning behind him in the hearth, and snow falling outside the window. But she didn't recognize any of that, either. His mouth moved, but she could barely make out the words, they were so faint. "I want you to have this, Ginny." Gin tilted her head and opened her mouth to ask him something, but he interrupted her. "Ginny."

"Yes?" she asked.

"Ginny," he repeated.

Gin glared at him annoyance. "What?"

"Ginny!" With a startled yelp Ginny glanced around. The boy had faded from sight, as had the room, and suddenly she was back in her bedroom, sitting on the floor staring at the spinning locket. "Hello, wake up. Are you alright? You just zoned out there."

Gin glanced up at one of her three roommates, nodding in embarrassment. Even though the memory was fading, she still felt as if she were there. She could still feel the fire burning, smell cider in the distance, hear his voice echoing in her head, and feel her heart beating a million kilometers a second. Who was that? He hadn't been in any of the other memories that had popped up in her head lately, most of which were about her house or her family or the school. "Sorry," Ginny stood, dropping the locket back in the drawer. She decided to avoid touching it from now on.

"Well, if you're going to Hogsmeade, you better hurry up. The carriages are about leaving in ten minutes."

"Drats!" Ginny grabbed her only pair of shoes, hoping nobody noticed that they didn't match the dress. She quickly ran a brush through her hair and decided to go without jewelry, as she couldn't seem to find anything else besides that blasted locket. Grabbing her changepurse, Ginny ran to the entrance as quickly as she could, barely making it in time before the carriages left. She found the one with Draco, Luna, and Blaise, and quickly jumped inside.

Ginny sat down next to Luna, who smiled at her. "You almost didn't make it. I was starting to get worried."

"I know. I got distracted."

"That is a lovely dress, Ginny," Blaise commented, as they had planned, and smiled warmly at her. She smiled back, all innocence.

"Thank you! Draco bought it for me."

"You look absolutely gorgeous in it…doesn't she, Draco?" Blaise glanced over at his friend sitting next to him. Ginny followed his line of sight to find Draco staring at her, his mouth hanging open slightly.

"Uhh…yeah. Gorgeous."

She kept that same innocently look on her face, though on the inside she was doing backflips. So he'd noticed after all. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine." He shifted uncomfortably, staring out the window, and was silent for the rest of the ride.

x x x x x x x x x x x x x x

When they arrived at Hogsmeade, they hit up every shop, and Draco found himself spending more and more money on Ginny. Everything she so much as glanced at or oohed at he grabbed up and bought for her: chocolates, magical trinkets, even some cheap jewelry that glistened in a shop window. Blaise questioned him about his sudden interest in shopping, but he merely shrugged. After all, it wasn't like it was even making a dent in his money supply, and he wanted to see her happy.

And she was happy. She seemed ecstatic as they wandered around Hogsmeade, listening to Christmas carols, browsing the shops, and eating lunch in a little café. Her good mood rubbed off on him, making him forget his troubles. For the past two weeks he'd been stressing over his upcoming birthday and whatever devious plans his father might have in store for him, but when she was around, all of that was forgotten. She was too beautiful to think of anything else but her.

And then his perfect day was ruined. Right after lunch the girls left to find the loo, Draco and Blaise promising to catch up. They paid the tab and made their way outside with bags of gifts, but Draco was stopped dead in his tracks by the sight that met him. Two red-headed men stood in front of a small stand filled with mischievous items which were selling fast. Although Draco hadn't seen them in a couple of years, they didn't look much different than they had at Hogwarts. Short, messy red hair, a spattering of freckles across the cheeks, and identical grins. The Weasley twins.

Draco cursed under his breath, and it didn't take long for Blaise to notice what had him upset. "What do we do? Should we let Ginny know they're here? Would she even recognize them, or would seeing them as adults just traumatize her?" He shot off all the same questions that were whirling through Draco's mind. Draco didn't have an answer, but after a minute of standing there, he discovered it didn't matter.

Ginny was walking towards them, Luna in tow, when the twins began to call out her name. At first she didn't seem to notice, but after a few seconds it registered and she turned around, trying to locate the source. Her eyes scanned over her brothers twice before they stopped, and then she just stared.

"Hello, Gin-bug? Anybody in there?" Fred, or perhaps it was George, asked. He walked up to her, ruffling her hair.

Ginny blinked, her mouth hanging open in shock. "George?"

"Wrong! I'm Fred," he told her.

For a few more seconds she stared, then her eyebrows bunched up and she glared at him. "Liar. You're George. And Fred. Merlin, look at you two."

The twins exchanged glances. "Always were the only one who could tell us apart, Gin-bug. Drives mum nuts that you've got us figured out when she hasn't."

Their younger sister shook her head in disbelief and reached a hand up, touching George's face. She stroked the stubble there, then ran a hand through Fred's hair. "Merlin," she repeated.

"What's up with you? You alright, Gin?" Fred asked.

"Yeah, I just…" she trailed off, glancing around. Her eyes landed on Draco before returning to Fred and George. For a few seconds she seemed to be having an inner battle with herself. "I just missed you." Ginny smiled at them.

The brothers smiled back, and she wrapped her arms around them each, hugging them tight. "You guys just look so much different than I remembered."

"Please, Gin-bug, we cut our hair a bit different, but other than that we haven't changed since you last saw us."

She nodded slowly, smiling. "Yeah. You have."

"Hey! Hey, you little rascal, put that back!" Fred broke away from her to yell at a Hogwarts student who tried to pick-pocket one of the items from the booth. "Sorry, Gin-bug, but duty calls. We'll see you at Christmas."

"Wait, you won't be here after today?"

"Nah, we're just selling today because all of the students are coming up to Hogsmeade for a visit, but after this it'll get a bit slow again, so we'll return to our base in Diagonal Alley. Damnit, he's running! Catch him Fred! I'll man the station!" George leaned over, kissing his sister on the forehead. "See you at break, alright!" Before she could protest he was swallowed up by the crowd that had formed, waiting to buy their goods.

Ginny was jostled through the crowds until she was pushed back to where Draco and Blaise stood. Luna finally made her way to them as well, a worried look on her face. "Are you alright, Gin?"

She nodded slowly, twisting her hands. "I mean, my parents sent me pictures and stuff of all the family so I could see how they looked now, but…it's so different. They're twelve years older, and…" she wiped at a tear, staring at the ground. "I didn't get to see them get older. I didn't get to experience it."

"Yes, you did. You just can't remember that right now," Draco whispered, hugging her. "But it'll come back to you someday."

"Will it?" she didn't pose it as a question, but a challenge. Ginny stared at him, tears trickling down her soft cheeks, her face set in a grim expression. "What if it never does?"

Draco didn't have an answer for that, and he could tell she knew that. She turned away and began walking down the street, all of her former joy gone, and the three of them followed in silence. They reached the edge of Hogsmeade and kept on walking, taking the path towards the old Shrieking Shack, though it hadn't been heard Shrieking in years. Finally they stopped, and she sat down on the ground, staring out at the woods in defeat.

Draco glanced at Luna and Blaise. "Do you guys mind…I want to talk to her alone." They nodded, walking off towards the woods, their hands interlocked. Draco sat down on the ground next to Ginny and wrapped his arm around her. He didn't say anything, nor did he look at her, and that seemed to be just fine with Ginny. She leaned against him, laying her head on his shoulder. "I know it must be really hard, not being able to remember. And I'm sorry for that. I don't know if there's anything I can do to make it better, except to tell you to keep on trying, and someday the memories might come back. And if they don't…" he sighed, "then I guess we'll just have to make some new ones. I mean, maybe it's not all bad that this has happened. After all, I never would have been friends with you if it hadn't."

"What do you mean? We're best friends, Draco." Ginny looked up at him, her face wet with tears.

"Now we are, but if you hadn't—"

"No, we are! I know it!" she stood up, glaring at him.

"Ginny—"

"No, stop it, Malfoy! Don't tell me we aren't friends. We are best friends, you're my only friend outside my family! We always have been, I remember it!"

Draco stared at her in shock. In her yelling she had lifted her hands to her ears, as if to block out anything that he might say. But he couldn't think of anything to say, except, "You called me Malfoy."

"What?" Ginny lowered her hands slowly.

"You just called me Malfoy."

"No I…" she stared off into space, searching her memory. Then she gasped, her hands flying up to her mouth. "I'm so sorry, Draco! I didn't mean…Why would I call you that?! Please don't be mad with me!"

"I'm not…I'm just…surprised." Suddenly she knelt down in front of him, grabbing him around the shoulders in a giant hug, her head lying on his shoulder. He wrapped his arms around her, all the while feeling guilty of how her legs straddled his, their hips pressed together, her breasts warm against his chest, even through the fabric of her dress and his sweater. He wondered how in the world she stayed warm in that thin, flowy pink and orange dress, with only a cloak thrown over it to shield her from the wind. His hands began to trail up and down her back, and suddenly he wished there were no clothes between them, and that he could wrap his arms around her naked body and hold her to him and feel how soft and warm she was—

"Draco!" He jumped, his face flushing with embarrassment. Merlin, had she felt him through his pants? What would she think of him, being randy when she was upset? "Draco, look, it's snowing!"

Oh. He glanced up at the sky, where, sure enough, fat snowflakes that had been threatening to fall all day were finally floating to the ground. Ginny stood up with a smile, watching as they landed on her skin and clothes and melted. They fell onto her red hair, forming a white halo, and clung to her long red lashes. She spun in a circle, arms outstretched, laughing.

Draco felt terrible for what he did next. He stood up and grabbed her around the middle, pulling her tight to him, her face inches from his. He ran a hand through her long red hair, then stroked her cheek with his thumb. His fingers brushed over her soft pink lips, and all he could think about was how nice they would feel against his own mouth. He swallowed, trying to will his body to let go of her, to step away, to do the gentlemanly thing. But he found he couldn't, and that he didn't want to. He wanted to kiss her. And it was getting damn hard to control himself.

A blush rose to her cheeks, and a small, shy smile crept onto her lips. And then she did the most unexpected thing. She grabbed his face, stood on the tips of her toes, and pressed her lips against his.

x x x x x x x x x x x x x x

The kiss had been short and sweet. Almost as soon as she'd pulled away, Blaise and Luna had come walking out of the woods, Blaise giving a high-pitched whistle that told Draco he hadn't missed the show. At first Draco had been embarrassed and ashamed, but as soon as he took a good look at his friend and Luna, with their disheveled hair, bright red faces, and swollen lips, he didn't feel so bad.

It had been an awkward ride back to the castle. Blaise and Luna cuddled up together like lovers, forcing Draco and Ginny to sit next to each other. Neither looked at the other one, but every time the carriage went over a bump in the road, and there seemed to be a lot of them, their knees would bump together. Draco wasn't sure why it was such an uncomfortable feeling. After all, they were just knees. Cute knees with cute little freckles on them, but it wasn't like he had a knee fetish or anything. Yet wherever her skin seemed to touch his, it felt as if she'd burned him.

Luna and Blaise were not helping the situation either. As soon as they arrived at the castle, the two scurried off together, under the pretext of walking Luna back to her common room for the evening. Draco, not wanting to be rude, felt he had to do the same. As with the carriage ride, it was uncomfortable and quiet, neither one of them speaking, until they arrived at the hall Ginny's common room was on. Then, as if out of nowhere, she suddenly burst out, "Am I ugly?"

"What?" He stared at her in shock, wondering where this question had come from.

"I must be ugly, because you won't look at me or talk to me. And when I kissed you you just stood there. If I'm really that bad, you should at least tell me!" She had tears at the corners of her eyes, though she didn't let them fall. Draco reached out a hand to brush them away, but she turned her face away from him.

"Ginny…no, I don't think that at all. I think you're the most beautiful woman I've ever met." And it was true, she was. He'd never known anyone that could make his heart beat in anticipation every time she entered the room. The way she talked, the way she moved, the way she smiled, so bright and full and uninhibited, was captivating. She'd come to consume his every waking thought and his dreams, so that she was all that mattered to him anymore.

"Will…will you be my boyfriend?" she asked, her hands twisting together in embarrassment.

"Wh—what?" He took a deep breath. "Ginny, I don't know if that's such a good idea…I mean…"

"I really am ugly!"

"No! I just…I don't think you're…we're…ready to do that, yet." He hastened to explain before she started crying again. "You don't know enough yet about sex and relationships. I just don't want you to do something you'll end up regretting later."

For a few minutes she just stared at him, and then her eyes widened in shock. "You think I'm too immature!"

"Not…not too immature for me, just too immature to have, y'know, a boyfriend."

"I am not immature, Draco Malfoy, and I'll prove it to you! I'll be the most boring, mature adult you've ever met!" She turned to stomp off in anger, but he grabbed her hand, pulling her back against his chest. He wrapped his arms around her so she couldn't get away. Draco tried to ignore how nice it felt having her secure in his arms. "That's not what I meant. I don't want you to change who you are, ever. But neither would I want you to rush into anything you're not ready for. Why do you want me to be your boyfriend anyway?" He reluctantly let her go and spun her around so they were facing each other, though he kept his hands on her shoulders, forcing her to look into his eyes.

She shrugged in embarrassment. "Because I like you, and you're my best friend, and…when you're around…I get this feeling, right here." She placed a hand on her lower stomach.

"Cramps?" Draco asked, confused.

"No, you idiot…not like when I'm bleeding. It's a good feeling…"

Oh. _Oh. _Draco just stared at her in shock, trying to decide what to think about that. Hot damn, Ginny Weasley was randy for him. Well, it wasn't impossible. She'd already proven when she'd gotten her period that her hormones were moving full speed ahead, with or without her mind understanding what was happening. Apparently, they had no problem with making her feel horny, either, despite the fact that she only had the memories of a five year old.

Draco tried to remind himself of that. As much as he would have liked to be her boyfriend, wouldn't that make him a pedophile? Or did it not count, since she had the body and hormones of a seventeen year old? Obviously, she didn't mind, after all, she had asked him. But was she really mature enough to consent to such a thing?

Draco sighed, his inner turmoil distressing him. "Ginny…I…why don't we just stay friends for now, oka—"

"No! This is what I want, Draco! I'll understand if you say no because you don't like me, but don't say no just because of my memory loss! Everyone keeps saying I should try to behave like a normal seventeen year old and then maybe my memory will come back and I really will be normal, but at the same time you keep, keep, coddling me! And I don't like it! And besides, I just had a memory today, so there!"

"You did? Of what?" It wouldn't have been the first time. Over the past few weeks she'd been telling him of her strange, fragmented visions. They seemed to be triggered by almost anything. A sight, a sound, a smell, anything that was familiar. Or sometimes they could be talking about anything and she would suddenly interject with a random tidbit of information, and when they questioned her further, she claimed she couldn't remember where she had heard it but that she just knew it was true. And just today, she had seen her twin brothers, and although it had taken a few minutes, she had recognized them for who they were, even twelve years older than she remembered.

Ginny shrugged. "I dunno who he is. Some boy, with black hair and green eyes and a weird, ugly scar on his forehead."

"Ginny, that's Harry Potter."

She just stared at him blankly for a few seconds, then her eyes widened. "_The _Harry Potter? You mean the one who survived Voldemort as a baby? But he's only a year older than me…oh right. Well, that makes sense then. But, hey, stop trying to change the subject!"

Draco was surprised. "Ginny, as far as I know, you've been smitten with Harry Potter your entire life. You two were dating last year."

Ginny's eyes got even wider, if that were at all possible. "Really? Bloody hell. Don't remember that, but…why? I mean, he's always been my hero, but why would I date him? He isn't at all attractive, not like you, Draco."

Draco blushed, something that was very rare for him, being a Malfoy. "So, there's our problem. What if someday you remember that you're in love with Harry Potter and then you hate me for dating you?"

Ginny smiled and shook her head. "I don't think so. I mean, when I saw him, I did get this strange fluttering in my chest, but…I dunno. When I picture him in my head now, I don't feel anything. So maybe…maybe in my memory I was in love with him, but I don't think I am anymore."

"Well, he did break up with you."

She shrugged. "Maybe that's for the better. Now I'm free to be with you."

"Ginny…" he tried to sound stern.

"Draco…" she mocked, lifting an eyebrow. "Look, you can keep rejecting me, but I'm not giving up. It's taken me this long to even get your attention. I finally thought you were going to kiss me today, but I had to make the first move."

"Wait…today, when you suddenly jumped on me…did you do that on purpose?"

Ginny got a sly smile, but when Draco continued to stare at her in shock, she just rolled her eyes. "It's called flirting, Draco, and I've been doing it for weeks now, but you never seem to notice."

Suddenly it hit Draco as if out of nowhere. She'd gotten a lot of attitude lately. And she suddenly did seem a lot more mature. If he thought about it, her vocabulary had gotten more colorful, her clothes flashier (possibly to attract his attention?), and she had seemed to be flirting with him, but he always thought that was unconscious. The little smiles she sent him, the way she seemed to be so touchy feely whenever he was around, how she would look up at him from under her eyelashes across the table. In fact, he distinctly remembered her leg rubbing along his the other day at breakfast, but he just thought maybe she wasn't paying attention.

"You devious little minx." He couldn't shake the shocked feeling. All along, she'd been playing innocent just so she had an excuse to get close to him. Ginny smirked, crossing her arms over her chest. Despite her memory loss, she seemed to have proven she _was_ a normal seventeen year old woman. "But…how do you know how to flirt…I thought you didn't even know what sex was…"

She looked exasperated. "Of course I know what sex is."

"How?"

"My parents taught me when I was young so that I would know if someone was trying to molest or rape me. They never had to worry with my brothers, but they knew the world could be much more dangerous for a girl, especially a young girl. Perverts tend to prey on younger kids because they don't even understand what sex is yet. And I know what a penis looks like, you can't live with six brothers in a cramped house and not accidentally walk in on them in the bathroom or changing." She scrunched up her face. "Though, I did look it up in a book, just to see if they all look funny like that. They do."

"Well, not all of them…"

Ginny laughed. "And I learned how to flirt, just like I learned everything about fitting in. I watched other girls with their boyfriends, and I talked to Luna, though she's a bit funny about it. Plus, some of it just came naturally. I mean, can you remember how you learned to flirt, or that you liked girls, or anything like that? Or didn't it always just seem to be there, as a part of you?"

"Yeah, I guess you're right…"

"I may not remember a lot, and I may not be as mature as you guys, but I'm not five years old. I've come to terms with that and accepted that I really am seventeen, and that I should act like I'm seventeen. And you know what?"

"What?"

"I don't feel like I'm five anymore. I feel like I really am seventeen."

For a long time, Draco didn't speak. Then he sighed. "Ginny…you know what you proposed, I would really like it but…"

"But what?"

"I'm just not sure…maybe…maybe if we take it slow, okay?"

Ginny's face lit up, and she jumped on him, her legs wrapping around his middle as she hugged him. "I'm slipping, Draco." She smiled up at him. "You wouldn't drop me, would you?"

He saw right through the ruse. "I'm not grabbing your butt to hold you up."

She huffed and let go, putting her feet back on the ground. "Fine. But don't you try to go back on what you said. You're with me now, and nobody else." She smiled and stood up on her toes, kissing him on the cheek. "Good night, Draco."

His eyes followed her as she walked to the portrait, giving it the password and climbing inside her common room. "Good night, minx."

She just smiled at him and disappeared.


	10. Draco's Terrible Birthday

A/N: Here is the next chapter. With finals coming up, I'm having less and less time to write them, even though I'm so excited about the ending.

I've gotten a few people correcting me about the dialect, age of adulthood, and Draco's actual birthday in the Harry Potter world. I am aware that in HP one is an adult at 17, and I know Draco's birthday is really in the summer, but this is just a fanfiction, so I don't feel it necessary to stick to every one of the (MANY) rules of the HP universe. Hopefully it doesn't bother anyone so much that they can't keep reading, however.

Well, enjoy the chapter, and I will have the next one up as soon as my busy schedule allows. Until then!

x x x x x x x x x x x x x x x

Draco hated his birthday. He wished he'd been born in the summer, so that he at least could graduate before McGonagall kicked him out. If Dumbledore were still alive, he wouldn't let one of his students be kicked out, whether they were suspect of being a Death Eater or not. But then, if Dumbledore were alive he wouldn't even be in this mess at all.

It wasn't all horrible. Ginny insisted that he have fun, and he genuinely tried. But how much fun could he have going to classes all day, worrying about his father, and feeling as if he were walking on glass so that he wouldn't be expelled? He got some gifts, which was nice. Luna, he was surprised she'd even gotten him something considering they weren't that close, bought him a strange looking talisman she claimed would ward off evil, Blaise gave him a book with some spells that weren't exactly legal, and Ginny gave him a stuffed animal.

He'd been quite shocked by it at first. He'd never had someone buy him a stuffed animal, not even when he was a child. His father had claimed that Malfoys were above such silly toys. It was a dragon with red scales, large teeth, black wings, and was ferociously cute looking. When he cast an animation spell on it, it flew around the room and breathed fire like a dragon as well, though it had no actual intelligence or life to it.

Draco was surprised to find he actually liked the odd gift. Though perhaps that was just because Ginny had given it to him.

Still, despite his friends' insistence that he enjoy himself on his birthday, he couldn't help but feel nervous. As they sat in the Great Hall eating dinner together, as per usual, he could feel McGonagall's eyes boring into him. He kept his shoulders hunched defensively, but every time he glanced slyly in her direction she was staring at him, challenging him to go ahead and fuck up.

Ginny's voice burst through his dark thoughts. "I made a new friend today," she informed them.

"Oh? Who, Ginny?"

"Dumbledore. Well, his portrait, anyway. After I saw his face and talked with him a bit, I began to remember who he was. He used to be Headmaster here, didn't he?"

"Yes, just last year," Luna informed her. "He was a great man. The leader of the rebellion, and even had a secret army named after him here in the school."

"Wow! That's so awesome! I wish I could've been there."

"You were," Draco and Luna answered simultaneously.

"Oh…well…cool! He's a really nice guy. For some reason, my strongest memory of him is sitting in his office, the one McGonagall has now, with a fire roaring in the background and a bloody sword on the table. Oh, and this bird, a little fiery one, a…phoenix." She set her chin on her hand, staring off into space. "He was really kind, though I couldn't help but feel this terrible guilt. I'm not sure why, though."

Draco glanced over at Blaise, who gave him a similar look. Word traveled fast in Hogwarts, and no secrets were ever safe there. Everyone knew it was Ginny Weasley who had opened the Chamber of Secrets, and that Harry Potter had gone in after her with a sword to kill the Basilisk that resided there. They'd been rescued by the one and only phoenix in the school, a pet of Dumbledore's.

Blaise shook his head slightly, and Draco was curious as to why. After all, hadn't they agreed to help Ginny rediscover her memories? He questioned Blaise after dinner, as they walked to the library. "That was a traumatic moment in her life, no doubt. And something that she should discover for herself. There were only three people down there who know what really happened that night. One is dead, one is missing, and the third can't remember. We can't tell her any better what occurred than she can remember it."

Draco nodded, and they kept the information to themselves. Some things she would have to discover without their help.

Apparently, that wouldn't take very long.

x x x x x x x x x x x x x x

Ginny stared at herself in the bathroom mirror. She had a large pimple on her cheek, one thing she did not enjoy about being a teenager was the acne, and her lips were chapped from the cold weather. She ran a hand through her curly red hair, pulling out the tangles. She'd tried her damnedest to put on makeup, hoping to impress Draco, but had failed miserably. Now she had big splotches of black around her eyes, which burned and kept leaking, uneven pink cheeks, and smudged red lip gloss around her lips, so she looked like she'd been eating strawberries and hadn't bothered to wipe the juice of her face. She sighed and decided to just wash it all off and go with a clean palette. After all, she looked more like a clown than a pretty model from Witch Weekly.

Ginny turned the faucet handle and stared at it expectantly. No water came out. Not even a drop. Odd. As she reached out to turn it back off, though she wasn't exactly sure why she bothered, she knocked over the makeup she'd borrowed from Luna. Ginny sighed in irritation and bent down to pick it up.

When she stood up again and turned back to the mirror, she gasped in shock. There was as boy standing behind her, in the girl's bathroom! He was odd looking, with some old-fashioned hair cut, and though she'd complained about hand-me-downs from her brothers, this poor guy was wearing a Hogwarts uniform from her grandparents' day.

"What do you think—" Her interrogation stopped mid-sentence. She'd spun around on her heel to yell at him for being a pervert, but found there was no one behind her. Looking left and right, then in every stall, she found herself completely alone in the bathroom. Ginny ran back to the mirror, staring in it, but the strange boy was gone.

And then her body began moving without her permission to do so. She knelt down by the broken sink, staring at the pipes that attached it to the wall. Her hand reached out and traced the carving of a snake on it. She began to whisper, and though her voice was her own, she did not understand the words, or rather sounds, leaving her mouth.

And then the wall began to open, and the sink folded into it. She stared down the long stretches of a black tunnel that went almost straight down. She held onto the edges of the wall around it for dear life. Ginny hadn't noticed the garbled voices in her head until suddenly they became one coherent masculine voice, yelling at her. "Go down the tunnel, damnit! Stop resisting!"

And as if she'd been shoved from behind, she plunged forward, head-first, into the darkness.

When her eyes opened again, she was laying on a damp stone floor. The stone walls were lit by torches that glowed green, reflecting in the water of the flooded room. To her side there was a strange statue of a giant face, and to her right there was the only passage to freedom. She must have passed out, though she wasn't sure how she'd walked all the way here unconsciously.

"Ahh, you're still awake. I'm surprised. I would've thought you'd be dead by now. You have astonishing willpower for a little girl."

Ginny stared up at the boy above her. She recognized his face, but it seemed odd. It took her a moment to realize why. She could see right through it, and right through all of him. He was as corporeal as a ghost, though she knew, somehow, in the back of her mind, that he wasn't a ghost. Not a ghost, but a demon.

Tom. His name came to her suddenly. Tom Riddle. Her best friend. Or so she'd thought.

"What…what do you want from me?"

"What do I want? You dim-witted girl, you still haven't figured it out? I'm using you."

She glared at him as best she could from her inferior position. "Yes, I'd realized that. But to what end? What do you hope to accomplish from killing me?"

"Oh, quite a few things. One, with your death I can become alive once more. I can use your life energy to make myself physical. And two, your kidnapping has no doubt led your little crush, Harry Potter, down here to save you. Harry Potter, the boy who bested me as only a baby. We will see how lucky he is this time."

Ginny smirked up at him as her vision began to darken. "Your arrogance will be the death of you, Tom."

"Sleep well, Ginny," he whispered in her ear, mockingly. And then she knew no more.

x x x x x x x x x x x x x x

"Ginny! Ginny, are you okay! Look at me." Ginny's eyes opened slowly, and she stared up at Draco's worried face. Luna and Blaise stood behind him, and both appeared frightened. "What happened to you? We've been looking for you for hours now. Did somebody hurt you?"

Ginny opened her mouth. She was going to say no, then thought more about what had happened. "He was going to kill me…"

Draco's face became alarmed. "Who! Who was going to kill you?!" He began to shake her shoulders, and Blaise had to place a hand on his arm to stop him.

"You must calm down, you're going to make her hysterical again." Blaise glanced at her, biting his lip. "What was his name, Ginny? What did he look like?"

"Tom…his name was Tom…and he was handsome. A handsome Slytherin boy. But he was so, so evil."

Blaise and Draco glanced at each other. Neither of them knew of a boy named Tom in Slytherin.

"Wait…Tom…Riddle?" Luna asked, staring at her. Ginny nodded slowly, wondering how she'd known that, and Luna's eyes widened. "Oh, Draco. She's alright. He was going to kill her but…well, that was five years ago."

"What are you talking about?"

"The Chamber of Secrets. Everyone knows that Ginny's the one who let the Basilisk out to petrify those people. And everyone knows how she went down there and Voldemort was going to kill her, but Harry Potter saved her. But not many people know Voldemort's true name, the one given to him at birth. I overheard Harry and Ron talking about it. His name is Tom Riddle."

Ginny nodded slowly as the pieces began to form. "Yes…it was all just a memory. But it seemed so real."

"Memories have that power, Ginny." Luna brushed her hair from her face. "The question is, are you alright now?"

"I…I think so. I'm just so startled. I thought I was going to die."

Draco engulfed her in a tight hug, holding her against him. She melted into him, her heart rate slowing, her body relaxing. She suddenly felt more peaceful and safe, now that she was in his arms. "I will never let anyone hurt you, I swear."

"That memory I had of Dumbledore. That was after I was rescued from the Chamber, wasn't it? The bloody sword on his desk, it's what was used to slay the Basilisk." He watched her face as she pieced the puzzle together. "There was that boy there, too. Harry Potter. He rescued me." She laid her head back against the stone wall, remembering it. "I guess I see now why you said I had a crush on him. I think I would have loved anyone who rescued me from that hellhole." She didn't miss Draco's grimace. "Don't think that means I'm still in love with him. My choice is still the same, Draco."

Luna lifted an eyebrow at him. "What is she talking about, Draco?"

"Oh yes, do tell us." Blaise slung an arm over his friend's shoulder, his lips quirking up. "You two aren't…dating now, are you?" He gave a fake gasp.

"Sod off, it's none of your business." Draco shook his arm off and stood, helping Ginny to her feet.

"Took him long enough," Luna muttered.

"What?" He spun, staring at them curiously. "Wait, you two were in on this? Did everyone know that Ginny was flirting with me except for me?"

They nodded in unison. "Pretty much. But that's alright, at least you figured it out eventually. Never seen you as dim-witted as you are around Ginny, though, that's for sure." Blaise grinned.

"Bugger," he grumbled. "C'mon, Ginny, let's get you cleaned up. I thought that someone had given you a black eye. Don't put on makeup again without someone's help, okay?"

"I don't think I ever want to wear it again for the rest of my life. It burns my eyes and it makes my face feel heavy." She rubbed at it, smearing it even more.

"Welcome to being a woman, I guess," Draco told her as he began to wash it off.

x x x x x x x x x x x x x x

Draco ambled along the grounds, soaking up the only warm day they'd had in weeks and would have for the rest of the winter, likely. Of course, the snow was still thick on the ground, it wouldn't fully melt until spring, and most of the students were out throwing it at each other, using it to build snowmen, or making angels. Ginny and Luna were currently working on their own snowman, while Blaise and Draco were sent over to the forest to pick out some dead branches that would work for the arms.

"What exactly do you plan to do this winter?" Draco asked him as they walked.

"Well I'm certainly not going back to my parents. Not with the way things are heating up. I think I'll just stay at the Leaky Cauldron. Maybe try to convince Luna to come keep me company…" he smiled over at her.

"You really like her, huh?"

"I think I'm in love with her, Drake. I dunno what it is, but something about her is just so…hypnotizing."

Draco grinned at his friend. "I'm happy for you."

"Will you join me this winter? We can split the rent."

Draco contemplated it for a few seconds. Then he shook his head. "My father won't as easily let me desert the Dark Lord as your parents would. Yours might accept your decision, but…you know Lucius. He'll hunt me down and drag me back there."

"If you're afraid of endangering me, you needn't worry. I've had all the same training as you, Draco. We're in this together." They'd stopped at the edge of the forest, and Draco avoided his friend's eyes under the pretense of searching for an arm-shaped stick. Finally he found one and began to yank on it, trying to pull it out of the deep snow.

When it finally gave way, something snapped off of it, hitting him squarely in the head. He clutched his forehead, cursing under his breath. "Bloody hell, what was that?"

"Draco, look." He glanced over at Blaise, who held up a necklace. "Look at this strange stone. You ever seen something like this?"

He had. The memory hit him suddenly, just as hard as the necklace had. They'd been right around there, Ginny sitting under this very tree reading a book. He'd felt drawn over to her, wanting to taunt her. And when she had stood up to tell him off, he'd reached out to grab her, and there'd been a sudden flash of light that threw them backwards.

Had this necklace been the cause? He informed Blaise of his sudden revelation. "Yes, I remember it now…Ancient magic?" Blaise asked.

"Perhaps…let's take it to Ginny and see—"

Draco was cut off mid-sentence by the sound of yelling. He looked up to see Ginny arguing with Pansy Parkinson, Luna standing behind her, trying to calm her. Pansy said something that must have set her off, and she threw back her fist, punching Parkinson in the nose. In just seconds they were rolling around in the snow, looking like they were going to kill each other while Luna desperately tried to pull them apart without getting hit or kicked. Draco and Blaise rushed towards the fight, as did a few other students, and by the time they got there they had to force the crowd out of their way.

Blaise grabbed Ginny, pulling her away from Pansy, whom Draco quickly disarmed. That didn't stop her from trying to attack him, though, and he received quite a few kicks before he managed to pin her to the ground, her hand behind her back twisted to nearly the breaking point. Both girls were looking worse for wear. Ginny had a black eye, a real one this time, and Pansy's nose was bleeding. Both girls had thankfully seemed to forgotten their wands and just went at each other with teeth and nails, leaving scratches and bites all over each other, as well as patches of hair they'd ripped out of one another's heads.

It didn't take long for the fight to catch the attention of one of the professors. Draco cursed when he realized who it was marching towards them. McGonagall.

"Stop, stop! My arm! Headmistress, he's breaking my arm!" Pansy wailed, as soon as she took notice of McGonagall's approach.

"Malfoy, let go of that girl immediately. The same goes for you, Mr. Zabini! All four of you, give me your wands! Now!" Draco slowly got off of Parkinson, and handed both his and Pansy's wands to the Headmistress, who eyed them suspiciously. "All of you are coming with me, now."

They trekked in silence back to the Headmistress's office, none of them daring to look at the other. McGonagall took Ginny and Pansy in first, leaving the boys outside to wonder what they were saying. They heard shouts, but they were indistinguishable.

After almost an hour, the door opened again. Pansy exited first, a smug look on her face, followed a few minutes later by Ginny, presumably to prevent them from attacking each other again. Ginny immediately ran to Draco, wrapping her arms around him. "I'm so sorry, I kept trying to tell her that you weren't involved, but she wouldn't listen to me."

"Malfoy! Zabini! I want you in here now."

Ginny had tears streaking down her cheeks. "I'll wait out here for you…"

They went in, shutting the door behind them. "Yes, Headmistress?"

"You both were caught in a fight on school grounds, the punishment for which is expulsion. As you are both eighteen and thus legal adults, I have the right to force you to leave, despite the wartime policy."

"That's bullshit! We weren't fighting at all, we were stopping them!" Draco yelled, slamming his fist down on the table.

"Mr. Malfoy, I suggest you get your temper under control or I will forcibly remove you from this office. You had not only confiscated Ms. Parkinson's wand, but you had pinned her to the ground and were in the process of breaking her arm. That is seen as a physical attack in my eyes. I could have worse done to you than being expelled, but I am being lenient. You both have one hour to pack your things and leave by the floo portal I am opening up here in my office. Do you understand?"

"What about Pansy and Ginny?" Draco asked.

"Ginny is not yet an adult, and so I will not expel her and risk her being exposed to this war. Ms. Parkinson has voluntarily decided to drop out and keep some of her dignity."

"But if she leaves, you know she will just join Voldemort's army. Why would you risk that?" Blaise asked her.

"Better she be a Death Eater out there than in here."

"Forgive my language, but that is the stupidest form of dealing with a problem I have ever heard, Headmistress. At least if you kept her here she could not become another casualty of this war. At least _we_ would not."

"My decision is made, Mr. Zabini. One hour."

"No!" Ginny burst through the door, which she had obviously been listening through. "You can't do that! You can't send them off, you know what will happen to them!"

"Ms. Weasley, I already told you to go back to your Commons—"

"I won't! I won't let you send them to their deaths! They have done nothing to deserve your hate!" Ginny's fists were clenched and there were tears in her eyes, and she'd never looked fiercer than she did at that moment.

McGonagall rose, glaring at her. "They've done nothing? You are a fool, child! A fool blinded by your infatuation. Draco Malfoy is a murderer! It is because of him that Dumbledore is dead! He killed Dumbledore, and the fact that he would ever be allowed back in this school after such a crime is a disgrace to his memory!" She pointed her bony finger at Draco, nearly shaking with rage.

"That's not true! You're lying! Draco, tell her she's lying!" Ginny stared at him, disbelief on her face. But he only stared back silently. He could not deny it. He had set up the murder. Even if he had not executed it by his own hand, he was the one responsible.

"I'm sorry, Ginny. It's true." He wanted to look away, but he could not. He deserved to see the shock on her face. The shock and disbelief that slowly turned into anger. Then hatred.

"Draco—" Blaise began.

"No. I am the only one responsible for his death. Snape was just trying to save me. He had no choice, he'd made an oath. And if he hadn't done the deed first, I would have." He had to. To do otherwise would have meant his death, and the death of his family, and possibly everyone and everything else that he loved. But he kept that part to himself. Why try to soften the blow? It was the truth, regardless of his motives.

Draco stood, walking past Ginny unmoving body. What he said next ripped his heart into shreds, but what other choice did he have? All he could do was tell her, "I've been misleading you, Ginny, and for that I am sorry. We never were best friends, and we could never be together. It's over." Nothing would fix what he had done, or who he was. She was in danger just being with him. It was better he left her in anger, left her to hate him than to mourn him.

He left without looking back.


	11. The Promise Stone

A/N: Once again, I find myself apologizing for the long wait. But no more! This is the last chapter! The conclusion! The end! The finale! In other words, it's over now.

I hope you keep me in your memories, as I will be retiring from fanfiction permanently to write original fiction. However, I will keep you all updated and let you know when my first book gets published (it could be many, many years before that happens, so don't hold your breath) so if I'm not on your author alert list yet, go ahead and add me, and when I get published, I'll somehow send out an author alert to everyone to let you know I've got a book out.

Thank you all for putting up with me and the longish waits between posts, and thank you for reading my stories and submitting replies. All of my readers have really helped me to grow as a writer, and I feel very confident in my abilities to write and publish novels now. As always, I hope you enjoy the final chapter, and someday I hope you'll read my books and enjoy those too! Until then, au revoir.

x x x x x x x x x x x x x x

Draco sat on the bed of his rented room, staring at the necklace in his hands. In all of the confusion of the fight and getting kicked out of school, he'd completely forgotten about it. Now here he was with the strange necklace, but no Ginny to ask what it meant or if it might have caused her memory loss. He glared at it in frustration and threw it at the wall.

It didn't shatter, didn't even break. Just bounced off the wall and rolled unevenly across the floor to land back at his feet. He buried his hands in his disheveled hair, staring down at it. "What the hell do you want from me? What are you trying to tell me?"

Why did it bother him so much? Every time he looked at it he had this nagging feeling in the back of his head, like he was supposed to remember something. Something he'd forgotten a long time ago. He picked it back up. It was warm in his hand, as if it gave off its own heat. Warm and heavy, and it made his hand look smaller in comparison to it. Draco looked up, surprised to find that he was no longer in his room. His hand _was _smaller, and younger looking too. And before him stood a little girl, a little girl who was strangely familiar with strawberry blonde hair, big brown eyes, and freckles sprinkled across her nose. She grinned at him, showing crooked teeth.

"It's a promise stone. In this stone I seal my promise that I will be your friend forever." Draco found himself telling her, his voice unusually high-pitched.

"A year from now?" The redhead asked skeptically.

"A year from now." He promised.

"Five years from now?" She tested.

"Five years from now." He repeated.

"Ten, eleven, twelve years from now?"

As the necklace suddenly began to glow, Draco jumped back. He was lying on his bed, staring at the ceiling. He glared accusingly at the stone in his hand, but it was dark and silent, showing no proof that it was the cause of this sudden strange vision. "What the bloody hell was that?"

He vaguely remembered the sight of the courtyard he'd been standing in. It was a garden that attached to a beautiful mansion where he had lived up until he was five years old, when his mother decided to sell it and move into a larger manor on the other side of Britain. And the girl, he'd never met her, yet she'd seemed so strangely familiar.

It hit him so hard he could barely breathe for a few seconds. She'd looked just like Ginny Weasley, if Ginny were five years old.

Draco's mind began to race. Ever since her memory loss, Ginny had claimed she and Draco were best friends. Even as her memories started to return, she held onto that belief. Why? Why would she still insist they were best friends…unless they had been? What if as children, they had been close?

Then why couldn't he remember her? He tried to picture her young face in his mind. Tried to conjure up some other strange memory. But nothing happened. Why wouldn't Draco remember her?

If it really had happened, if she really had been his best friend as a child, he would be able to remember. Unless someone had taken those memories away. And that sounded exactly like something his parents might do.

Draco stood, clutching the necklace in his hand, his resolve hardening. There was only one way to find out.

x x x x x x x x x x x x x x

Ginny sat in her room at the Burrow, staring out at the snow cascading to the ground. The wind picked up, blowing it around in circles, along with the trees and shrubs. She felt as cold inside as it looked out there.

"It's supposed to be a terrible blizzard tonight," Luna said, sitting down on Ginny's bed. She didn't look at Ginny, or try to cheer her up. Luna knew that there was nothing that could make Ginny's dark mood go away.

Ever since Draco had left, she'd been brooding. At first Ginny had felt disbelief. Draco could never kill someone as powerful and kind and gentle as Dumbledore. Then, she'd felt only hatred. She gave into it for a week, letting it fuel her and keep her going. But after a week of him gone, only worry and a deep sadness were left. She missed him. She thought of him constantly. Where was he now? What was he feeling? Was he alone? Was he sad? Or did he not care? Was he happier without her?

She yearned for him, but had no way of contacting him. He'd left them no address to reach him at. Blaise had been sending Luna letters, but all of them were the same. He was looking, but he hadn't found Draco yet. The longer Ginny waited, the more she felt useless and depressed. She wanted to talk to him, wanted to hear the truth. Blaise had said that Draco didn't tell her everything. That although he had planned the murder, in the end, he couldn't bring himself to kill Dumbledore before Snape did. Blaise claimed that Draco had been driven by the need to protect his family.

Was that true? Ginny couldn't ever picture Blaise lying to her. He was the kind of person who believed in truth, no matter how much it hurt. But then that would mean that Draco had lied to her, or simply not told her the full truth. Surprisingly, she could picture Draco lying easier than she could Blaise.

But the more she thought about it, the more Ginny found she didn't care. Dumbledore had been a wonderful person, but Draco hadn't uttered the curse himself. And even if he had, she wasn't entirely sure she could blame him. In his place, had her family been threatened, she might have done the same thing. And even if Draco was a killer, Ginny knew she would forgive him. She already had. She loved him too much not to.

"Look, Ginny. What is that?" Luna stood and went to the window. "Do you see it?"

Ginny had to strain her eyes, but she did. Fighting against the wind and snow was a small bird. As it got closer, she realized it was an owl, and that it had a letter. "Look! It's Blaise's owl!"

Luna thrust open the window, ignoring the snowflakes that blew in and quickly began to cover her and the floor in a thin layer of white. The bird flew inside without landing, and continued to flutter around until it had shaken its coat of snow all over Ginny's room. She would have puddles to clean up later. Finally, when it seemed satisfied, it landed next to Luna, holding out its leg.

"Thank you. Here, have a treat." The owl cooed happily and began to eat while Luna untied the note. She read it over quickly to herself, then looked up at Ginny. "Gin…you won't believe it. He heard from Draco."

"What…what did it say? Is he okay? Where is he at?"

"Blaise wrote that he received a letter from Draco. In it Draco said he had suddenly remembered something he had forgotten, and that he needed to speak to his mother. He's going to Malfoy Manor to see her. He says he'll meet Blaise tomorrow in Diagon Alley, and Blaise invited us to join him. But…he put this in the letter for you. Blaise claims Draco said you might know what it means." Luna handed Ginny a folded piece of parchment. She opened it up and stared at it in surprise. Drawn on the parchment was a very familiar looking necklace, and written under it, in Draco's scrawl, were the words "Promise Stone."

Ginny slumped down on the bed, holding the paper so hard in her hands that it began to crumple. She felt hot tears burning in her eyes. "Of course I know what it means. Draco gave it to me…for my fifth birthday. It's a promise stone, or so he said. Whatever that is."

Luna sat on the bed next to Ginny. "I've read about these. They're supposedly very rare, and work like promise spells. Only, if the promise is broken, it doesn't kill you like a promise spell does. Instead, it forces you to uphold your promise in whatever way it must."

Ginny stared at Luna for a long time, thinking over what she'd said. "Could one of those ways be to make you lose your memory?"

x x x x x x x x x x x x x x

Draco stepped into Malfoy Manor, and was immediately accosted by a startled servant. "Young master Malfoy, how may I help you?"

"Please, take me to my mother. And…make sure that my father is not aware of my presence." Draco held out a bag of galleons for the servant, who took it with a smile.

"Of course. Follow me, she is in the east foyer."

Draco followed the servant, even though he knew the way. He no longer lived in the home, and he would act as a guest while he was here. The servant left him at the doorway and he found his mother sitting in an elegant eighteenth century armchair, staring out over the gardens. She didn't look up when he entered the room.

"Mother." Startled, she jumped and spun around, staring at Draco in shock.

"Draco…Draco, my son! You've returned home, oh I knew you would." His mother glided over to him, wrapping her arms around Draco. He stared down at the top of her blonde head as she buried her face in his chest, tears glistening on her porcelain cheeks. He did not hug her back.

"Mother, I am not here to stay. Only to ask you a few questions."

Narcissa stepped back, staring up at him. "Oh…I see…of course. What…what did you want to ask? Please, sit." She returned to her armchair, and Draco sat in the adjacent couch stiffly.

"I have had a very strange year at school, mother. I met a girl."

"Oh, how wonderful."

He nodded. "Yes, she is. And I care for her very deeply. But it is curious. You see, this girl is of the belief that she and I are best friends, and that we have been since we were young children. Yet, before this year I hardly knew her, and I only identified her with her name."

Narcissa shook her head in confusion, her lovely forehead wrinkling. "What are you getting at, Draco?"

"Mother, her name is Ginny Weasley. She is the youngest of the Weasley family, our enemies. And she had informed me that we have been best friends since we were children. Why don't I remember this then, Mother?"

Narcissa blinked rapidly in surprise, and Draco noticed her hands began to shake. "I…I honestly don't know. She must be confused. Or a liar. Those Weasleys—"

He held up a hand to silence her. "I would prefer if you did not speak ill of them, Mother, for I am very close to Ginny, as I've already said."

She stared up at him in shock, unable to speak. "You…you are in love with this girl? But Draco…she…she is your enemy."

"So I have always been told. And so I have always believed. But now I am to believe otherwise. Mother, I want the truth. Why can't I remember her?" Draco affixed his mother with his most intense glare, trying to see past her well-crafted façade, attempting to discern if she was lying to him. She looked frightened for a few seconds, and then her face fell, and he saw only sadness on it.

"Draco I…I was only trying to protect you. And her. I knew you were friends with a little girl when you were young, and I knew that she was a witch like us. I even met her a few times while you two played out in the garden, and she seemed sweet enough, if not a bit wild and dirty. But one day, when I asked you what her name was, you told me it was Ginny…Ginny Weasley. And when I heard that name, I knew that you had made a terrible mistake. You did not mean to, you did not know that she was your enemy. And you would not have understood, not at such a young age. But that did not matter, your father…he would not have cared. He would have beat you, beat me, and if he had caught the girl…he would have killed her. He would have Draco, and you know it! I had to do what was best. I had to break you two up as soon as possible. So I told your father I wanted to move to a larger manor, told him I did not like that one. We went to the other side of the country, and I did not tell you until a few days before we left, so that you could not tell her. And when we got to our new house, you cried and cried, you missed her so. But I had to keep her out of your mind. So every time you asked of her, I ignored you, or I pretended I did not know what you were speaking of. I made you think she was just a fabrication of your imagination. And soon you stopped asking, and eventually you forgot. And I thought that was that."

His mother stared down at her hands, and Draco felt hot anger burn in his chest. "You had no right to do that. You had no right to take my memories from me."

She glared up at him, suddenly angry. "I did not! I did not erase them, I could not bring myself to do such a thing to my baby. And how dare you scold me! I did what I had to to protect you both! I could have had her killed had I wanted to, but I saw the innocence in her, and I knew she did not deserve to be dragged into this blood war, not at such a young age. However you found out about her, I implore you to give her up, to keep her from your mind. It is the only way you can keep her safe."

Draco shook his head. "No…it's not. I can keep her safe myself. I can protect her. I can protect her from this war, and I can protect her from my father."

Narcissa laughed bitterly. "Just by being with her, you make her a target for your father."

"I know that! Don't you think I know that!" Draco stood, pacing. "But there is nothing else I can do, Mother. I love her too much to give her up. I'm going back to her. And if he chases me, if he tries to hurt her, I will kill him."

"Well, I seem to have walked in on an interesting conversation." Draco froze as the familiar voice reached his ears. He searched for his wand, but found it missing from his robes. Turning slowly, he stared at his father, Draco's wand twirling between his fingers. "Oh, the servant picked it off of you and gave it to me, before letting me know that my son had returned home to visit his mother. Now, I am certain I know whom the man is that you are threatening to kill, but whomever is the lucky lady you are choosing over your father?"

"That's none of your damn business." Draco gritted out between clenched teeth. "I came here to find out what I wanted to. And now I'm leaving."

"But you just arrived home, son. And we haven't had a proper reunion." Lucius spread his arms wide, as if he were going to embrace Draco. When Draco didn't move, he dropped them and his vicious smirk. "It matters not who this flame is. You are here now, and you can follow in your father's footsteps, as you were meant to."

"I don't think so—"

Lucius lifted his wand at Draco. "That wasn't a question. You will join the Dark Lord. And you will enjoy it. Imperio!"

x x x x x x x x x x x x x x

Ginny and Luna stepped into the Leaky Cauldron, looking around for Blaise. He sat in a back corner drinking something out of a dirty glass, and when he noticed them, he motioned for the girls to join him. As soon as they sat down the words flew out of Ginny's lips. "Where is he? Where is Draco?"

Blaise's face was grim, and Ginny felt her heart sink. Suddenly her mind began to race with the worst possible outcomes, and she feared he had been killed. "He's still at the manor. He promised we would meet here today, but he has not come. I think his father is holding him hostage."

Ginny clutched the table tightly in her hands. "Is he…is he alright?"

"I think so. His father wouldn't hurt Draco, Ginny. He is much too valuable to Lucius." Blaise placed a hand on Ginny's, but it did little to comfort her. "I am going there tomorrow. I am still a guest in their home, and they will not be curious to see me there. I may be able to help him escape."

Ginny didn't have to think about it for a second. Her mind was already made up before the words left her mouth. "We're going with you."

Blaise stared at her in shock. "No. It's much too dangerous."

Ginny shook her head. "I have to go. I have to make sure he's safe, and I have to get him out of there. And I am willing to do anything, even kill, if it will save him."

"Ginny…" Blaise began.

"Blaise, I'm going in there, with or without your help. But I could really use it, since you know the place better than I ever could."

Blaise stared at her grimly for a long time, then turned to Luna. "Can't you talk any sense into her?"

The girl just shook her head, smiling. "Once Ginny's got her mind set on something, there is no talking sense into her."

He spread his hands in defeat. "Then…I guess we're breaking into Malfoy Manor."

x x x x x x x x x x x x x x

Ginny held her arms tight around her body, trying to keep out the cold. Despite the thick black cloak that she wore, the bitter winter wind still bit through it, freezing her to the core and making her hands, feet, and face go numb. Under her cloak her red hair was pulled back tightly and covered by her hood, and she wore all black. Luna was dressed similarly, to make them blend in with the night. Their brooms leaned up against the fence at the outskirts of Malfoy property, and they stood in the shadows of the trees, waiting for Blaise's signal.

It had been a week since their rendezvous in the tavern, and they'd spent the whole time planning. Now it was just days before Christmas and Draco's initiation, and the house was bustling with guests who had arrived for the Initiation party that would occur in just forty-eight hours. All of the guests kept the servants busy, and the terrible blizzard kept everyone from going outside to enjoy the gardens. It was the best possible time to infiltrate the Manor and rescue Draco.

"You kn-know, it's s-s-strange…but th-this almost feels like a game to me…" Luna whispered, her teeth chattering and her breath leaving her mouth in big white clouds.

Ginny knew what she meant. As scared as Ginny should be, she felt like a child playing a game of robbers, especially when she considered the heavy gear she was wearing. Besides her black clothes, she had on a pair of hand-me-down leather boots from her brothers, bottles of potions that, when thrown, had a range of effects from burning to exploding to doing things Blaise said she didn't want details about. Her wand rested in her right pocket and a detailed map of the house in the left that she had attempted to memorize to the best of her abilities in just a week. Luna was similarly armed and crouching next to her in the snow.

"How m-m-much longer do you th-think he'll be?" Luna asked.

Upon Blaise's instruction, they had flown to the manor on their broomsticks, careful not to trip any wards that were in place to keep out intruders. While most were down because of all of the guests, a few that specifically recognized enemies of the Malfoy family were still in place. Blaise had told them to wait outside the gates at the edge of the property while he arrived by floo. He would then interrupt the wards for a short time and give them a signal from the south-facing right-most window, where his guest room was at. They would fly up to the window, join him inside where he hopefully already had Draco with him, and escape.

Or so that was the plan. So far they'd been waiting outside the gate in the freezing cold for over half an hour, and still no signal from Blaise. All they could do now was wait as their bodies became more and more numb.

x x x x x x x x x x x x x x

"Draco! There you are. I've been looking—"

The words froze in Blaise's mouth as Draco turned towards him. He stared at his friend in shock, dropping the arms he had held out for a hug. "Ahh, Blaise. I see you've come to attend my initiation ceremony in a few days. And have one of your own, of course?"

Blaise opened and closed his mouth as he tried to think of words to say. Draco didn't look much different. His usually messy hair was slicked back in place, like he used to do while they were younger. He had on nice occasion robes made of black and silver silk. But there was a strange glint in his silver eyes and a cruel twist to his lips, and for some ungodly reason, Pansy Parkinson was hanging on his right arm, practically crushing it under her massive cleavage. Finally, Blaise managed to compose himself and say, "I need to speak with you in private, Draco. If you don't mind." He nodded to Pansy.

"Whatever you need to say to Draco, you can say in front of me. After all, we're to be married this spring, once he's joined the Dark Lord."

Blaise swallowed hard and just smiled and nodded. "Draco?"

"Excuse me, Pansy." When she began to pout, Draco smiled and stroked her cheek, before kissing her full on the lips. "It will only be a moment my love."

"Okay, but don't take too long, I want to mingle," Pansy simpered.

"Of course not. This way, Blaise."

Blaise followed Draco out of the foyer and down a hall, away from the gathering. When they reached the end of the hall, Draco led Blaise into a small office room, closing the door behind him. "Whatever did you want to talk about?" Draco asked, sitting in a chair and propping his feet up on the desk.

"Damn, Draco, I know you're trying to stay alive, but did you have to shove your tongue down her throat right in front of me? I think I'm scarred for life." Blaise ran a hand through his hair, looking out the window. He strained his eyes, but he couldn't see Ginny or Luna. Good, they were keeping well-hidden.

"I would ask that you refrain from insulting my future wife in front of me, Blaise."

Blaise spun on his heel, staring at Draco in shock. He looked around the room. So even the damn walls had ears? Blaise wasn't surprised. "I apologize. Well, now that we're here, perhaps you would like to take a walk outside? How about the south-facing gardens?"

"Whyever would I want to go out in this weather? It's freezing out there, and besides, I told Pansy I wouldn't be long. Just say what you came to say."

Blaise stared at Draco, trying to understand what he was playing at. "Draco, I would really like to take a walk…"

Draco stood, glaring at him. "And I would really like to be done with this conversation. Tell me what you came here to."

Blaise looked around, then grabbed a piece of paper and a quill. He began scribbling on it. _She's waiting outside. We're here to get you out of here, so stop being difficult._ Blaise slid the paper to Draco, who picked it up and read it before grabbing the quill and writing something else underneath.

_I am not being difficult. I don't know who this 'she' is, or why you want me to leave, but I am staying. I can not miss my initiation._

Blaise stared at the words on the page in disbelief. He scribbled furiously on word. _Ginny!_

As soon as Draco picked up the piece of paper, he crumbled it up and threw it at the wall. "What the hell kind of game are you playing at, Zabini?" Draco grabbed Blaise around the neck, pinning him against the wall. "Don't you ever mention that whore in my presence again! I can't believe some of the things I…" Draco shook his head. "But I was confused then. My eyes are open now."

"What the hell is wrong with you, Draco? You don't want to do this! You don't want to be a Death Eater! Why are you doing this? Just because you're afraid of your father, that he might hurt you or her or something?"

"How dare you! This is all I want! I want to be a Death Eater! That is who I am, who I was born to be, and I am lucky I was! You said no to the Dark Lord, you threw away your chance and your parents let you, but I will not. My father is proud of me, and I am proud to serve Voldemort. And if I ever see you or that…that redheaded Weasley bitch again, I'll kill you both. Now get the hell out of my house."

Draco dropped Blaise's neck and left the room, slamming the door behind him. For a few seconds Blaise leaned against the wall in shock, then stood, leaving the room. He had to find Ginny.

x x x x x x x x x x x x x x

Ginny saw movement in the corner of her eye and looked up. There was a darkly clad figure running towards them through the snow. It must have been Blaise, as no one else in their right mind would be out in this weather. She stood stiffly, nudging Luna.

"Look, there he is. C'mon, let's go meet him."

"But…what about the signal?" Luna mumbled tiredly. "He has to give the signal, Gin."

"Screw the signal, I'm freezing and I want to see Draco. Let's go." Ginny grabbed her broom and got on it, Luna following suit. They flew up and over the fence, heading for the figure in the yard. As they neared it, however, Ginny found that there was something odd. Blaise looked shorter for some reason, and stocker. And he was wearing a dress.

Ginny pulled up short, but it was too late, the woman had seen them. She looked up from under her hood, an ugly smile on an even uglier face. Pansy Parkinson. "Well, looks like you two little birds got lost in the snowstorm. How unfortunate for you that you ended up in enemy territory."

Luna flew closer to Ginny, fear on her face. "But…where's Blaise?" Luna asked.

"Blaise couldn't be here, unfortunately. He's a bit…tied up right now." Ginny whirled around at the new voice, staring behind her. Lucius Malfoy stood in the snow, smirking. In his hand he held up a crumpled piece of paper with two familiar scrawls on it. It was too far away for her to read, but she feared she already knew what it said. "Lucky for us, he forgot to throw away this. And Pansy just happened to find it."

"I told you bitch to stay away from my boyfriend, and now you dare to insult me by coming here days before his initiation? You won't live long enough to regret what you've done." Pansy held up her wand.

"Ginny, I think we should have waited for signal," Luna whispered, staring between Pansy Parkinson and Lucius Malfoy.

Yeah, no fucking kidding.

x x x x x x x x x x x x x x

Ginny opened her eyes slowly, her head throbbing. The floor under her was cold, and she found she was only wearing her bra and knickers. The room was dark, but she was able to see Luna lying next to her, passed out cold. She tried to remember what had happened, and it came back to her in a rush. The figure in the snow turning out to be Pansy, Lucius holding up a crumpled note, them trying to escape only to be shot down, a brief scuffle, and then darkness. She felt her head. There were no open wounds, but it was pounding hard enough to know she'd been hit with some kind of stunner. Ginny sat up with a groan.

"You awake?" she heard a hoarse voice ask. She looked up and found Blaise leaning against the wall a few feet away from her. He had shackles and chains on his arms, keeping him there in a standing position. When she examined him more closely, she saw that his clothes were torn and bloody and he had many bruises and cuts running over his body.

"You look like shit," Ginny whispered. "How did they find out?"

"I was an idiot. I forgot about the note. I didn't realize that Pansy Parkinson was eavesdropping. She was already cautious around me, she knew I was dating Luna, and when she heard your name…well, let's just say the girl's not as stupid as she looks. She gave the note to Lucius and they gave me a truth serum to make me tell them where you were. They didn't have to also beat me, but I guess that was just part of the fun. I'm so sorry, Ginny. I should never have dragged you into this. I should never have let this happen."

Ginny stood slowly, her body aching from the cold and the hard ground. She went over to Blaise, hugging him gently. "No, I was a fool. I didn't wait for the signal, I thought it was you. I was so cold and we'd been out there for hours, I wasn't thinking straight. But it's okay. Draco will save us."

"Ginny…there's something you need to know. About Draco…" She stared at him in confusion, and his face held only sorrow. "He's not the same person, Ginny. They put some kind of spell on him…he's like them, now."

"I don't understand."

"He's a Death Eater, or soon to be one. And he doesn't care about you, or any of us. He's left us here to die."

Ginny shook her head in shock. "No…that's not true. Draco wouldn't do that…he loves me. No spell would change that."

"I'm sorry…"

A door opened somewhere above them, and they both looked up, blinking in the sudden light. It woke Luna, who moaned and managed to sit up, staring around in confusion. Before she could ask what was going on, though, footsteps began descending the stairs. Ginny was able to make out the form of Lucius Malfoy, and he held a vial in his hand. "Alright ladies, we're going to do the same with you that we did with Blaise. Of course, we can't kill him, his parents being in the club and all, but after we're done getting information from you, you'll wish you were dead anyway." Lucius held up the vial of clear liquid, shaking it. It looks like nothing more than water to Ginny. "Now, would you rather do this the hard way…or the easy way?"

Ginny straightened her shoulders, glaring at him. "I'm not afraid of you, Malfoy, and I will tell you nothing."

"Oh you will, Weasley. Trust me. Now how about opening that pretty little mouth of yours…" he reached towards her and she slapped his hand away, glaring at him. Despite how her heart thudded in fear, Ginny managed to keep her back straight and her face a mask. She crossed her arms over her chest in defiance, glaring at him. "Don't even think about it, freak."

"Fine then. Let's have a little fun, shall we? Draco?" Lucius snapped his fingers at the figure behind him, which stepped forward, lowering its hood. Ginny's heart fluttered as she laid eyes on Draco. He was here to save her. Certainly he was.

"Yes Father?" Draco asked.

"Restrain her."

"Yes." Draco stepped towards her, and Ginny almost ran into his arms. Almost. But Blaise's words echoed in her mind. She took a step back, and he took one forward.

"Draco…you hold him and I'll knock him out…" Ginny tried to laugh, but it died in her throat. "You can stop playing now. We're all here, and it's just you and your father. We can take him. And then we can get out of here."

"Sorry, Weasley, but I'm not going anywhere. This is my home." He had backed her into the wall, trapping her.

"Draco, why are you doing this?" Ginny asked in a whisper. "What's wrong with you?"

He grabbed her by the hair, tilting her head back. "Nothing's wrong with me. I'm finally doing what I was born to do."

"And what is that?" Ginny asked, her heart sinking.

"Getting rid of muggles, mudbloods, and vermin like you. Now say ahh." He grabbed her face, but she struggled against him, kicking at his legs and groin and trying to hit him. When Draco realized she wasn't going to cooperate, he pinned her against the wall, squeezing her jaw bone until he had forced her mouth open. Tears spilled down her eyes as she felt her heart break. Blaise was right. This was not her Draco. And he was not going to save her.

Lucius stepped forward, opening the bottle. He let a few drops fall into her mouth, and the angle of her head forced her to swallow it or choke. When she had, Draco released her, stepping away. "Now, Weasley bitch, you're going to tell me everything you know about Harry Potter, the Order of the Phoenix, and anything else about the resistance against Voldemort."

"Bite me." Ginny spat as she fought the spell.

"Oh not yet. That will come after the questioning, as part of the torturing stage. Now where is Harry Potter?" Lucius asked.

"On Earth?" Ginny replied. Her comment earned her a backhanded slap in the face.

"Your snarky comments will not be dealt with, Weasley. Where is Harry Potter exactly?"

"I don't know!"

"Then what is he doing?" Lucius yelled.

"I don't know that either!" she yelled back.

"Then what is he planning against Voldemort?"

"I don't know I don't know I don't know!"

He hit her again, and this time she fell to the floor. "Draco, pick her up." Ginny felt her body being lifted…by her hair. She wished she had the energy to be angry, but her head was throbbing too much. "How are you managing to lie to me?"

Ginny spit in his face. "I'm not. I just don't know the answer to any of your damn questions. I don't know where Harry is, I don't frankly know that much about him. I don't know what the hell this Order of the Phoenix is, and I don't know why you keep asking me all these damn questions!"

"How can you not know? You are the daughter of two of the most important leaders of the rebellion!"

"Because I can't remember, that's why." Ginny smirked. "Yeah, I bet Draco didn't tell you that part, did he? That I went and lost all my memory this year. That I don't know jack shit about anything you're talking about. You're just wasting your time, asshole."

Lucius glared at her, but then he straightened his back, fixing his now disheveled cloak. "Fine then. If you are as useless to me as you claim to be, then I can kill you and your friend here. Draco, I'll leave you to it. Torture her to death. Use whatever methods you like. Just make sure she dies screaming."

Draco grinned down at her, and there was no mercy in his eyes. "Yes, Father."

"No! You can't do this!" Luna lunged at Draco, managing to hit him a few times before Lucius restrained her. He kept his wand to her temple, threatening to let her die first if she made another move. "Please, Draco, remember who we are! We're your friends! Ginny's your friend! You love her!"

Draco's head shot up at the words. "I don't know what you speak of, whore. I could never love filth like a Weasley." Lucius smiled at his reply.

Draco threw Ginny to the floor, standing above her. "Have you ever felt the Cruciatus Curse, filth?"

"I don't know," she answered honestly.

"Now you will. Crucio!"

Pain ripped through Ginny's body. A pain so intense that her mind went numb from it, and even though she couldn't hear it above the ringing in her ears, she knew she was screaming. Every muscle twisted in fire, and it felt as if they might rip off of her body. Her skin felt as though it was slowly being torn open. She thought the pain would never end. That she was in hell, that she would never be freed. But then it was lifted, and she found herself panting as she lay face-down on the cool stone floor. She knew it had been only seconds, but it had felt like an eternity.

"Good, good, Draco. But remember, that leaves no physical marks. I like to see my victims bleed. Perhaps the whip? Or better yet, you could rape her."

"But Father?" Draco stared at Lucius in disbelief. "That would be to spill my precious seed in a traitor to our blood."

"The Dark Lord allows us the pleasure of traitors' and muggles' bodies as long as they suffer and don't live long enough to bear children. Trust me, she won't survive past the night. Go ahead, take her. Let her know the pain of toying with Death Eaters."

Draco nodded to his father, then stared down at Ginny. She tried to crawl away from him, but he grabbed her by the leg and pulled her back, unclasping her bra and ripping it off of her. Ginny held her arms around her chest to cover herself as he kneeled over her. "You disgust me, filth, but if this is the way of Death Eaters, then I will do as my father says." He undid his pants, surprised to find that he was so easily erect for someone as disgusting as a blood traitor and a Weasley at that. When he pinned her arms to the ground and smothered her mouth with his, he felt his body shudder with lust. Why did he feel this? Raping her should not be enjoyment. The only lust he should feel is power. He hated that she made him feel so, he hated her, and he wanted her to suffer. Draco lifted his hand, striking the girl across the face.

She gasped in pain, but when she looked back up at him, there was only defiance in her eyes. "You can hit me all you want, Draco. You can beat me and rape me. Go ahead. It won't change the truth. It won't change who you really are."

"Shut up! Stop speaking, filth!"

"No! I will only speak the truth! You are a good person, deep in your heart! And you know it. You care about people, all people. You don't hate them just because of their blood. You care about Blaise, he's your best friend, and you like Luna's company because she's quirky. And you like me. There was even a time when you loved me."

"I don't believe you! Stop lying!" Draco's head began to pound. He clutched at it, trying to get the nagging in his mind to go away. There was something he was forgetting. Something important.

"This isn't who you are, Draco! I'm not lying! How could I be, with a Truth Serum?"

"You've found some way to break it! You've found some way to lie! I will break you!" He took his cloak off and kicked his pants away. "I will break you so you don't say anymore lies!"

As he reached to rip her underwear off, she grabbed his face, staring into his eyes. "Look at me, Draco. Look at me!" He struggled, but finally his icy grey eyes met hers. "I love you. I. Love. You."

The fury in his eyes frightened her, but not as much as the thought of losing him did. Even if he left her, even if he broke her heart and her body, she could not lose him to this spell, this curse. She refused to let it take him away from her.

As he leaned over her, something heavy slid out from the collar of his shirt. She stared at the familiar stone on the familiar chain, remembering the day he gave it to her. When he made that promise to be her friend forever, he clasped the stone between their hands. Ginny grabbed it, breaking the chain and taking Draco's hand in hers. "I love you Draco. Don't you remember? Aren't you my friend?" He stared at her in shock and she lifted up, pressing her lips to his.

There was a bright light behind Draco's closed lids as he felt the chains break free. The confines on his mind let go, and he could finally remember. Ginny. He loved Ginny. In all the craziness of the past four months, he'd fallen in love with her. But his father had cursed him, forced him to serve the Dark Lord and to enjoy doing it. Forced him to be the perfect son. Draco thought of what he'd done to Ginny, and of what he'd been about to do. He'd hit her. He was going to rape her. He felt bile rise up in his throat at the thought, but he held it down. After all, she still had her lips pressed against his.

Draco pulled away, opening his eyes as the light finally died down. He stared at Ginny's hand, where the stone sat cold and black and empty. "Ginny…Ginny, I'm so sorry. I'm so so sorry." He grabbed her, pulling her against him in a tight hug.

"It's…it's alright." She whispered.

He held her at arm's length, shaking her. "No! No it's not! I can never forgive myself for what I've done to you. I don't deserve you. I won't even ask for your forgiveness. After we leave here you will never see my retched face again." He slumped down, staring at the floor.

"Draco! It wasn't your fault. It was just the curse." She lifted his face, smiling at him gently. "You didn't have any control over yourself."

"It doesn't matter. I've hit you. That makes me an…an…abusive boyfriend! Just like my father. I'm just like my damn father." He hit himself in the head, trying to punish himself for what he'd done.

Ginny grabbed his arms, restraining him. "No, you're not. Because you're a good person. And I still love you, so don't you dare talk about leaving me."

"Also, you're still conscious, whereas your father isn't looking so hot," Luna piped up. They looked over at her, and then behind her, where Lucius lay slumped against the wall, unconscious.

"Is he dead?" Draco asked, staring at his father's unmoving body warily.

"I don't think so. Just knocked out. But he'll wake up any minute now, so we'd better get out of here."

Draco nodded, helping Ginny to her feet. He took off his shirt and covered her up with it, then went to undo the shackles on his friend. "Nice to have you back, Drake," Blaise said, smiling up at him through swollen eyes and a bloodied mouth.

"I'm sorry…" Draco began.

"Save it. You can make it up to me later, when we get the hell out of here." Luna held Blaise as he slumped against her, trying to gain the energy to walk. Draco picked up Ginny gently in his arms, despite her protests that she didn't need his help.

"I know where they have your clothes and gear, and the quickest way out of here undetected. Let's go."

x x x x x x x x x x x x x

Draco walked through Diagon Alley linked arm in arm with Ginny. It had been a few weeks since they'd escaped Malfoy Manor, and she had taken to visiting him in his room every night at the Leaky Cauldron. They stopped on a small footbridge over a river that somehow managed to still have flowing water despite the freezing temperatures. At least the blizzard had ended, leaving the alley covered in a blanket of thick, white snow up to their knees in some places. Draco turned to Ginny, brushing her hair back from her face. Her bruises were almost faded, but he still hated himself for them, and every time he saw them, he pledged once more that he would never hurt her or let anyone else do so again. Ginny removed her hand from her pocket, and in it she held the promise stone, lifeless and dull.

"I still don't get it." Draco said.

"I read up on it. Most people just think it's a legend, and that promise stones aren't real. Vendors who sell them in stores are usually just selling a rock. But this one is genuine. Apparently, a promise stone believes it must fulfill the obligation of the promise made on it. When you gave me the stone on my fifth birthday, you promised that we would stay best friends even until twelve years from then. In other words, until we were both sixteen and seventeen."

"But…why did it wait until now to start working?" he asked.

"I had forgotten about it after you moved away, and it ended up in the attic with a bunch of old childhood things. My mom was cleaning out the attic just before my birthday and she found it and mailed it to me. She thought it was just a harmless, pretty necklace. When it came in contact with both of us at the same time and realized the promise had not been fulfilled, it had to do something to remedy the situation.

"It did so first by reverting me back to my five year old self the day that promise was made. We did become friends again after that, but we had lost the stone, so it didn't realize its obligations had been fulfilled. The only time we were both in the presence of the stone after I lost my memory was a few weeks ago in your father's house. But by then you had been cursed with Imperius, so you hated me. So the stone then had to make you remember that you loved me. However, Lucius was an obstacle to that goal, so I guess it decided to get him out of the picture."

"Except it didn't get rid of him permanently. He's still alive, and he can still hunt us. You aren't afraid?"

Ginny shook her head, smiling. "No. I know you will protect me…not to mention, I can protect myself, y'know."

"I know. That's what I love about you." He smiled. "So…now its job is done?" Draco asked.

"Yep. And now we can finally be rid of it." She tossed the stone in her hand a few times. "The damn thing is way more trouble than it's worth." Ginny glared at it, then threw it as hard as she could at the stream. It bounced in the water a few times before being swept away in the current.

"But it did bring us together," he pointed out.

"True…" Ginny smiled.

"The question is, now that you have your memory back, are you sure you still want to be with me?" Draco asked, kissing her gently on the lips.

"I don't know, I guess I'll have to think about it," she teased, before returning the kiss. A church bell began to chime in the distance. "Oh, it's time to go."

"Go? Go where?" Ginny smiled, grabbing Draco's hand and preparing to apparate.

"Luna and Blaise are already there waiting for us."

"Where? Where are we going?" he asked again.

Ginny grinned at Draco. "You're going to meet my parents."


End file.
